


It takes two Toziers

by BiancaBibi



Category: IT (2017)
Genre: AKA doesn't eat chicken, Eddie is a nurse!, I just invented that, I started writting this cuz I'm bored, It's probably not enough though, Like, Mike get's to have a girlfriend cause we all love him, Mike is so good with kids, Multi, My first reddie fic, No Pennywise AU, Okay bye, Only Stan and Bev know how to take care of babies, Rachel always finds a way to humiliate her father, Richie Tozier is a Mess, Richie and Rachel have horrible fashion sense, Richie has a cute lil daughter, Richie tries his best, Richie's ex is cruel, Slow Burn, Stan is chickentarian, but everybody knows that, but she's oblivious, but we all hate her so, but we love him anyway, everybody loves Madonna, except Melanie, lots of fluff, part-chat, people have trust issues, real slow burn, so it's fine
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-09
Updated: 2019-05-11
Packaged: 2019-06-24 08:16:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 32,742
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15626568
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BiancaBibi/pseuds/BiancaBibi
Summary: Richie Tozier was dumb.Everybody knew that by now.He was a master mind when it came to academics, sure, but dumb, nonetheless.Plain dumb.Richie had made a lot of mistakes in the past nineteen years.He had made lots of stupid, senseless, dangerous, dumb mistakes.But his worst mistake was, with no doubt, getting his girlfriend pregnant.





	1. Don't leave me alone

**Author's Note:**

> So this is my first Reddie fic. I hope you guys enjoy. Tis idea has been in my mind FOR EVER and I just had to get it out.  
> I'll update when I'm bored (Don't worry, that's quite ussually ;) )

Richie Tozier was a UCLA college student. He was loud and obnoxious, but caring, nonetheless. He was fun and loved going to parties. He procrastinated a lot, yet he seemed to be one of the top students in UCLA. He was tall and lanky, with dark, curly, untamed hair, brown chocolate eyes, and he wore thick, coke bottle glasses, that made his eyes look ten times bigger. His face was full of freckles, and always wore the same cheesy grin. He loved to make jokes and his loud mouth sometimes gave him away, and so he had his very well-earned nickname, “Trashmouth”. All in all, he was a guy with good intentions, but not so good ideas. But most of all,

Richie Tozier was dumb.

Everybody knew that by now.

He was a master mind when it came to academics, sure, but dumb, nonetheless.

Plain dumb.

Or, at least, that’s what Beverly Marsh thought as she heard him ramble over the phone that night, nine years ago.

Richie Tozier was dumb and there was nothing Beverly Marsh could do about it.

Richie Tozier had made a lot of mistakes in the past twenty years.

From proposing to the principal at lunch, to making seven shelves from the library fall in domino effect. From pushing Henry Bowers’ buttons and getting into as many fights as possible, to trying to kill his math’s teacher because “the man’s as dead as a zombie”. From stealing his parent’s credit cards and various alcohol bottles, to getting caught by the police using both illegally, and spending three nights at the police department, waiting for one of his friends to manage to get him out of there, knowing his parents wouldn’t show up.

He had made lots of stupid, senseless, dangerous, dumb mistakes.

But his worst mistake was, with no doubt, getting his girlfriend pregnant.

* * *

 

At the age of 14, Melanie Holliston had moved to Derry.

At the age of 15, Richie Tozier and Melanie Holliston had started dating.

At the age of 17, Richie Tozier had told Melanie Holliston he loved her, and she had said it back.

At the age of 18, Richie Tozier and Melanie Holliston were Derry’s power couple. They had graduated, and they were enjoying their last summer in Derry before moving to LA together to study in UCLA together, and get an apartment together. All in all, they were happy, together.

At the age of 19, Richie Tozier ruined it all when he got Melanie Holliston pregnant.

As Richie Tozier explained to his long-time best friend, Beverly Marsh, through the phone, Melanie Holliston had gotten furious at him, claiming it was all his fault. She had broken up with him, but had agreed to him helping her through the pregnancy process, thought reluctantly, after deciding she would, in fact, give birth to the baby, instead of going for abortion process, as Richie had expected her to.

Then one rainy afternoon of the 23rd of October, year 2009, the baby was born (or so it was supposed).

And if Richie Tozier hoped in any way he would get support and help from Melanie Holliston to raise the baby, then he was just plain dumb (though that has already been stated).

Richie Tozier had been loosely playing the guitar that afternoon, his mind somewhere else, very, _very_ far away, when the honk of a car startled him, bringing him back to a dark, rainy LA.

He looked out the window to the unpleasant weather, and he saw a familiar old black Mustang, and a blurry figure (courtesy of the rain) coming out of it, holding something in its arms.

Richie immediately jumped for his keys and his coat, flinging the door wide open and slamming it behind him before slipping down the stairs of the flat in which he, now alone, since Melanie moved into a dorm room in campus, lived.

When he arrived at the lobby, he could see Melanie at the other side of the doors, her damp long brown hair sticking to her wet face, holding the baby between her arms.

Richie adjusted his glasses and reached for the doorknob with shaking, sweaty hands. When he opened the door, the baby was immediately shoved into his arms, and he stumbled back, fighting his clumsiness and trying not to drop the newborn human that rested asleep on his arms, oblivious to the trouble it had caused.

“There you go” Melanie had simply said, starting to walk back to the car.

“W-What gender is it?” He finally managed to choke out, looking at the peaceful baby as it curled into its father, seeking the warmness of the male’s body.

“Why don’t you see for yourself?” She asked, reaching for the car door and opening it.

Richie gave her an unamused look. Melanie sighed.

“It’s a girl” She answered before getting into the car, slamming the door strong enough to startle Richie without waking the baby up. The last thing any of them needed now was for her to start crying. _Though,_ he thought, _if the car horn didn’t wake her up, slamming a door hardly would._ Richie found himself smiling at that, for some reason he was unaware of.

Richie looked down at her daughter. _So, girl, huh?_ That wasn’t that bad, was it?

Richie suddenly remembered. “What’s her name?” He asked as Melanie turned on the engine.

“Doesn’t have one” she stated.

“What? You didn’t give the kid a name?” Richie almost shouted, but the girl just shrugged.

“She’s your baby. It’s your choice, not mine” She explained, and Richie would’ve face palmed if it weren’t for the baby in his arms.

“She’s yours too” He reminded her, but Melanie ignored him.

“Good luck Richie” She said before driving off, not meaning it at all.

“Wait, so you’re not gonna help me?” He asked, not receiving an answer, nor expecting one.

* * *

 

As soon as Richie recovered from the shock of the whole situation, he went up to his apartment, placing the baby in his bed, and immediately went to call Beverly and tell her about his little adventure.

And there they were.

Beverly Marsh was a pretty girl. She was tomboyish, with short, wavy auburn hair, and beautiful blue eyes. Her pale face was sprinkled with freckles, and she had a stunning smile. Beverly was outgoing and nice, but was also quite intimidating, she cared for her friends and would help them at any cost. She was studying for a mayor on Fashion, back in Portland, where she lived with her boyfriend.

Silence spread through the room for some moments after Richie finished his tale, until Beverly finally managed to talk.

“Okay, so let me get this straight. So, Melanie just had her baby, gave it to you and, just, left? Vanished?” She asked, and Richie uselessly nodded.

“Mhm” he hummed in confirmation.

“And she doesn’t even have a name” She continued.

“No sir” Richie answered.

“And she left _YOU_ in charge of it?!” She exclaimed.

“Correct” Richie said.

“But what about college? And how are you possibly going to make enough money?” Beverly insisted.

“I don’t know, Bev, I don’t know! I have no frigging idea!” Richie shouted.

“Language, Richard” She warned. “And keep it down, you might wake her up, and you don’t want that” She added after.

“Oh, come on, I didn’t even curse!” Richie whined. “And as for sleeping, _nothing_ can make her wake up. I’m starting to think she’s dead”

Beverly rolled her eyes. “She’s not dead, you idiot. Anyway,” She continued. “do you know her actual date of birth?” She asked.

“No idea, but it probably wasn’t today” Richie said, putting his glasses down and rubbing his eyes. “This is the date I’m choosing for her birthday though”

“Why don’t you just ask Melanie?” Beverly suggested. Richie shook his head.

“She made me promise to never talk to her again after the baby was born and you, my dear Bevvie, know that I am a man true to his word” Richie said with fake innocence.

Beverly snorted. “Yeah true to your word my a-” She was cut off by a familiar male voice. “Bev, we’re here. I brought sushi!”

“Haystack, my man!” Richie exclaimed as Bev put the phone on speaker.

“Richie?” Came Ben Hanscom’s voice from the other end of the line. “Is that you?”

Ben Hanscom was one of the sweetest human beings to ever exist. With a mayor in architecture, he was one of the biggest bookworms ever, and had a strange passion for history. He loved going to the library almost as much as he loved his girlfriend, Beverly, wo he lived with. Ben was tall and corpulent, therefor an excellent hugger. He could be shy, but he was very nice to be around. Ben had short, straight, golden brown hair, and small, brown, pretty eyes. He loved poetry, and always wanted the best to the people close to him.

“Of course it’s him” Another voice came, sounding annoyed, that belonged to none other than Stanley Uris. “Who else has a voice that sounds like a constipated cat giving birth when they’re excited?”

Stanley Uris was Jewish. He was tall (not as tall as Ben or Richie) and skinny. His hair was light, and as curly as Richie’s, though his was tamed into a perfect hairstyle. He had light blue eyes and a generally calm expression. He wasn’t very open about his feelings (in fact Richie usually joked about his lack of heart), but he had a huge passion for birds, and so he was getting his biology degree in a university in Seattle, where he lived with his roommate in a dorm room in the university. Stan loved order and cleanness, getting nervous quite frequently when he visited Richie, due to his lack thereof. Stan usually acted like he despised Richie, but everybody knew that he loved him, and that Richie was his best friend.

Richie laughed. “Stan the man gets off with a good one!” He cheered.

“So why are you calling, Rich?” Ben asked.

“Baby’s home” He explained, suddenly remembering the baby girl snoozing in his room.

“Oh my gosh really?” Ben asked.

“Yeah, now keep it down. She’s sleeping and I wanna keep it that way”

“Richie that’s great” Ben exclaimed, lowering his voice.

“No, not great. Definitely not great” Beverly stated.

“It’s true” Stanley agreed. “This is gonna be a disaster”

“Hey, have a little faith” Richie said.

“Don’t worry Richie, I’m sure you can do it” Ben said.

“Thanks, Benny”

“But you know nothing about taking care of babies!” Beverly said.

“Well yeah, but…-” Richie stated, but was cut off by Stanley.

“Have you thought about giving her for adoption?” He asked. Richie shook his head.

“I can’t okay? I just can’t. You don’t understand guys, she’s my daughter, my responsibility. I see me in her. I made a lot of mistakes, and it’s my job to help her not make these mistakes. It’s bad enough that her mother already left her, I’m not going to do that to her too.” Richie explained.

Beverly sighed. “Oh Rich…”

“I just, I wanna do the right thing. And I feel like this is it. I wanna give her the opportunity to have a parent that loves her, a _biological_ parent” He said genuinely.

“The ‘right thing’ to do would be to give the kid an opportunity to live with a family that actually knows a thing or two about how to take care of babies” Stanley said, thought Richie could hear the pity in his voice. When he first told his friend about him having a baby, before telling him about the fight with Melanie, he had been so happy for him, and so supportive, but the fact that it wouldn’t have a mother brought him down.

“Don’t listen to Stan, Rich” Ben’s cheerful voice snapped Richie out of his thoughts. “I’m sure whatever you think is right will be great for the baby”

“Thanks Ben” Richie said, yawning. “I’m gonna go to sleep now, guys”

“Okay Rich, call us tomorrow!” Beverly said.

“And don’t do anything stupid” Stanley added before Richie hung up.

 

* * *

 

As Richie went to his room, his eyes laid on the small figure that was his daughter, and he wondered why Melanie had wanted to give birth to the baby, if she didn’t want anything to do with her at the end of the day.

 _Probably to make me suffer,_ Richie thought, _revenge and those kinds of things._ He shrugged and carefully got under the covers of the bed.

Almost immediately, His daughter curled into his chest, and Richie smiled unconsciously, carefully wrapping an arm around her,

 _I’m not giving up on you, little one._ Richie thought. _Never, my little… Rachel._

Yeah, Rachel sounded right. Rachel Tozier and Richie Tozier, fighting against the world.

He had a feeling it would all turn out just fine.


	2. Bevvie dear

“You named her Rachel?” Beverly's voice came through the line. Richie hummed absently, going down the isle of the supermarket.

“You think she likes strawberries or plums?” He asked, reaching out for the baby food jars.

Beverly didn't answer his question. Instead, she insisted on the name topic. “Really, Richie? Rachel Tozier? Are you kidding? You couldn't think of anything more creative?”

Richie shrugged to himself. _Guess I'll get both._ He thought putting them in the shopping cart. “Rachel is a creative and beautiful name, thank you very much” He answered, walking to the diaper section, smiling as the little girl looked up at him at the mention of her name.

“Yeah, sure” Beverly said, irony dripping from her words. “ _SO_ creative. You just put it on her 'cause it's the feminine form of Richie”

“It is?” Richie asked as he grabbed a big pack of diapers, and moving on to grab a feeding bottle. He was debating on getting a pink one, red one or blue one. Richie wasn't the kind of person that followed stereotypes, but he still wanted to choose a color he felt would suit Rachel perfectly. He looked at the baby, wondering what her opinion was, but she just locked eyes with him. She had beautiful, chocolate eyes, just like his, and Richie found himself smiling.

“Yes, idiot, it is” Beverly's voice echoed through his ear as he searched in the shelf, hoping there would be some other color.

“Well I think Rachel is a beautiful name, Rich” Ben said, and Richie smiled.

“Awww, Benny, I think I never loved you so much. Hey Bev, you mind if I borrow your boyfriend for a while?” Richie asked. _Bingo,_ he thought as he reached for the very end of the shelf and grabbed a purple feeding bottle. _Take that, color stereotypes!_ he screamed in his mind, proud of his choice, and showed it to Rachel, who giggled, making motion to try and grab it, which Richie thought would be impossible.

The baby had only cried twice so far. Once, at 3 in the morning, because she had wet herself (and Richie), and the other time later that day, when she was hungry. Richie had decided to go shopping for the toddler then, seeing as he needed some stuff for her, and decided it was a good time to call Bev.

“I'm afraid that's not possible, Rich, we live in Portland, remember?” The female's voice reminded him, and Richie sighed.

“Come on, I'm sure you two would love LA!” He whined desperately, walking over to the entrance to pay.

“Sorry Richie. I'm afraid we won't be able to visit until thanksgiving. Why don't you call Mike, though? I'm sure he can help.” Ben suggested.

Mike Hanlon lived in LA, and had Richie's same age. Richie had met him a few months ago in the library, and apparently knew Ben, as they grew up in the same town. Richie remembered how, after telling him he was going to be a father, Mike smiled as nice as he always does, and told him that if there was anything Richie needed, he was one call away.

“I guess I could” Richie said as he thanked the cashier, walking out of the store, phone and bag in one hand, and little Rachel in the other, as the kid attempted to wrap her arms around her father's neck. “So, where's Stanley?” He asked.

“He left this morning” Beverly explained. “Said that he needed to sort some stuff with his roommate before he went back to college, so I guess he'll arrive to Seattle in about 2 hours”

“So, have you thought on giving the baby a second name?” Ben asked. Richie stopped walking, suddenly growing nervous.

“Um... actually, yeah, I have” Richie said. Both Ben and Beverly waited in silence at the other end of the line, expecting an answer Richie didn't give.

“Well?” Beverly said after some seconds. “Let's hear it”

“It's, uh... It's Beverly. I was thinking on naming her Beverly. For a second name, that is” He said, bashfully, and if he had a free hand, he would've probably scratched the back of his neck. He wasn't uncomfortable with telling them, just nervous of their reaction.

Rachel looked up at him, with curious eyes, confused with the sudden change of behavior. Richie heard a gasp at the other end of the line, and he couldn't make out if it had been Ben or Bev, nor if it was an excited gasp or a horrified one.

After a few seconds of silence, Beverly's quiet voice sounded. “Oh, Richie... Really?”

Richie smiled. “ _Why of course, my darling, for I owe you so much. What else could I do to please a beautiful young lady such as you, my dear?_ ” He said in his infamous British accent.

Richie could practically feel both of them grinning. He looked down at Rachel. _Rachel Beverly Tozier_ , he said in his mind, and immediately liked the sound of it.

“Rachel Beverly Tozier” Ben repeated out loud, and Richie definitely loved the sound of it. Suddenly, Rachel's eyes turned sad and her bottom lip started trembling. Richie didn't need anyone to tell him what that meant.

“Guys, Igottago'causeRachel'sgonnastartcrying, I'llcallyoulaterbye!” With that, he hung up, not waiting for an answer.

* * *

 

Mike Hanlon was the first of Richie's friends to meet Rachel. After the baby had been fed and Richie had put clean diapers on her, he managed to get her to fall asleep and had called Mike after, not before making himself a PB&J sandwich because, _God_ , he was starving.

* * *

 

“So, Rachel Beverly Tozier, huh?” Mike asked as Richie gave the baby a bottle. Rachel sucked the bottle happily, putting her tiny hands around it.

If Ben Hanscom was one of the sweetest persons to have existed, then Mike Hanlon was definitely _the_ sweetest. Mike’s smile was so nice and contagious, and most of all, it was natural. Mike was caring and loving, though his appearance usually suggested the opposite. Mike was tall, very tall. He had tanned skin and broad shoulders, and looked very intimidating, but was not. Mike would never use violence unless necessary, and his smile transmitted a feeling of ease. His curious brown eyes lit up when he saw his friends, and the people he loved. Mike used to live in a farm in Derry, homeschooled. But when his grandparents, the owners, died, Mike understood there wasn’t much he could do with the farm, so he sold it, moved to LA and started working in a public library.

Richie hummed, focused on Rachel, before turning to Mike. “You wanna…?” He asked, motioning for Mike to grab the baby.

“Oh, right, of course” Mike said, and there was the easy smile again. He grabbed Rachel, who sat on his lap and started playing with the hem of his shirt, while Richie went to wash the feeding bottle. Mike smiled at the baby, and she giggled.

“You know, she probably has around a month already” Mike suggested. Clearly, neither Mike nor Richie had been around a baby before, as it was clear she was at least 4 months old.

“I know, but we can’t be sure” Richie shrugged. To be honest, he hadn’t really counted Melanie’ pregnancy months, since the baby could come earlier, or later. But now that he thought about it, it had been more than a year ago when Melanie had broken up with him.

“Why do you think Melanie kept her during that time?” Mike asked, petting Rachel’s head lightly.

Richie shrugged again, smiling at the scene before him. “She probably told the doctors the situation, and they told her she had to spend a month or so with her before giving her away” He suggested. Mike nodded, looking back at the baby.

“Any ideas on Godmother or Godfather?” Mike asked.

“Well, yeah” Richie scratched the back of his neck. “At first, I chose Bev and Stan, since they’re my best friends, but then I realized it’d be a bit weird, since Bev is dating Ben and it’s be logical for him to be the Godfather. So, I decided to name Rachel after her as a second name and have Stan be the Godfather.” Richie explained. “But now that I think about it, Stan leaves in Seattle, and that is a few hours away, so as much as he visited, he really wouldn’t be very close to her, physically. And I thought maybe, since you will be very close to her, both physically and emotionally, since you’re the one friend that can help me for now, maybe you could be the Godfather? I don’t know, I’d still love it if Stan could be the Godfather. I wish it could be both of you, but then we go back to the Bev-Stan problem.” He finished. Mike nodded, understanding what Richie was trying to say. As much as he felt flattered, he knew what he had to do.

“Look, Richie. You’re a great friend, and I really appreciate that you want me as the Godfather, but let’s be honest here. I’ll never be as close to you as Stan is. You two have been friends since kindergarten, and he knows you better than anyone.”  He told his friend “ _He_ should be the Godfather, not me. I’m sure Rachel will love him the same, distance or not. And if something ever did happen to you, I promise I’ll make sure Rachel arrives safe and sound to Stan’s arms. Come on, Rich, you know it’s the right thing to do. Stan will be so happy about it” Mike concluded. Richie swallowed hard and nodded. He knew Mike was right, and he adored his friend for being nice enough to decline the title and offer it to somebody else. Richie thought he could never be happier with the friends he had.

“Now, let’s skype Stan and tell him the little surprise” Mike said, winking at Richie, and setting Rachel down in the couch, between the two of them.

 

* * *

 

“Hello?” Stan’s face appeared in the screen.

“Hello, Stan! It’s Richie and Mike” Mike said, excitedly.

“Oh, hello, Mike and Richie” He said, waving.

“Hiya there, mate!” Richie exclaimed in his best pirate impression. “Come aboard on this fine ship and live yer dream of sailing down tha sea with yer good ol’ friends and yer pretty lil’ parrot!”

“Icarus isn’t a ‘pretty lil’ parrot’,” Stan argued, imitating Richie’s voice. “He’s a fine, beautiful mockingbird” He said, petting little Icarus, that stood on his shoulder. Icarus was small, with brown and yellow feathers and a perfectly curved red beak. “Now turn your camera on, you doofus. As much as I hate to admit it, I want to see your horrendous face. Not you, Mike, your face is undoubtedly beautiful.” Stan stated, making Mike giggle and Richie dramatically gasp.

“Stanley, you wound me” He said, putting the back of his free hand (the other holding Rachel) on his forehead and fake-fainting. Rachel, sitting on her father’s lap, giggled at his representation, attempting to clap.

“Wait, is that a baby I hear?” Stan asked, his eyes widening suddenly.

“Why, yes, it is” Mike said, with a smug smile.

“Turn the camera on now, Tozier” Stan demanded, he’s features turning mad, with a hint of excitement.

“Say you’re sorry” Richie simply shot back, shrugging.

“Come _on,_ Richard, don’t be an idiot” Stan protested.

“Not until you apologize” Richie said. The sound of a door opening made Stan look away, to his left. Someone said “Stan, I’m here!”, and hen Bill Denbrough came to view.

Bill Denbrough was Stan’s roommate. He was tall, maybe a bit taller than Ben, and he had brown, straight hair neatly combed (though not as neatly as Stan’s). His eyes were light brown, and he wore a nice smile on his lips. Bill was a nice person, and he loved to draw and write. He was studying in the same college as Stan, but concentrated on writing books, and had already sold a few. He also drew caricatures for people from college in his free time, and won a little money from that. Bill was friendly, though a bit shy. He had a stutter, but he had learned to control it over the years.

Bill checked Stan’s computer screen. “Richie?”

“The one and only. Good day to you, Billiam” Richie answered. Bill put a confused face.

“Why are you calling?” He turned to see Stan’s resigned expression. “What’s going on?”

“Richie got his baby and, being the idiot he is, he won’t let me see it” Stan muttered as an answer. Richie gasped dramatically.

“My baby is not a football! She _arrived_ yesterday” Richie corrected his longtime friend, and both Mike and Stan rolled their eyes.

“Whatever, Richie” The curly haired boy muttered.

Bill’s eye’s shone in excitement and a huge grin spread through his lips. “Really? That’s great, Rich!” He exclaimed. He disappeared from the screen and, seconds later, he appeared again, with a chair, and sat on it. “Please do show us!” He said, bouncing on excitement, and he reminded Richie of when he Skyped Stan and both Bill and his little brother Georgie, who was visiting his older brother, were there. Georgie had the same expression of excitement Bill was wearing, when Richie told him he was going to send him a present for Christmas (which he did, mind him).

“Stan has to apologize first” Richie said. Bill turned to his roommate with pleading eyes, and Stanley sighed.

“Fine. Richie, I’m-” He was cut off by Richie.

“On your feet” Richie ordered. Stan put an exasperated face, but Bill pleaded him silently with his eyes and he gave in. He kneeled.

“Richie, I’m so sorry for having insulted you and offended you. Please forgive me” He said. Richie turned to Mike, who shrugged. He turned back to the screen and nodded.

“You are forgiven” He said in a deep voice that made Rachel giggle again.

“Great,” Stan said, sitting back in his chair. “Now show me your frigging baby!” He shouted.

Richie covered Rachel’s ears, gasping overdramatically. “Language, Stanley! There’s children around!” He said in a high-pitched voice. “I thought I taught you better than this” He added, shaking his head. Rachel looked at Mike with curious eyes, asking him silently what was going on, and he smiled at her, trying not to laugh at her expression.

“Richie, _please_ ” Bill pleaded. Richie sighed, turning the camera on, and Rachel’s eyes widened at the sudden burst of color and the two pairs of eyes watching her. Mike laughed at the kid’s expression, caressing her arm gently.

Bill and Stan both had wide eyes and dropped jaws.

“S-she’s beautiful, Rich-chie” Bill stuttered due to his excitement, and Stan nodded vigorously, a smile breaking into his lips.

“What’s her name?” Stan asked.

“Rachel Beverly Tozier” Mike recited. Stan smiled broadly at this.

“Really? That’s great! Did you tell Bev?” He asked, and Richie nodded.

“She loved it, I s-suppose” Bill said, and Richie nodded again.

“I swear I heard her cry” He smiled. Rachel eyed the two new faces, trying to stand on her father’s lap and reach the screen, and Bill giggled at the sight.

“You like her?” Mike asked Stan, who nodded.

“Yeah, yeah I- I love her.” He answered. “She’s got your eyes, Rich” He added, whispering, and Richie smiled, nodding.

“Well, that’s good, ‘cause you’re her Godfather” Richie announced, a huge smile on his face. Stan’s eyes widened at that, and he covered his mouth with his hand, tears menacing to fall from is wet eyes. Rachel looked at Mike, confused to as why he would cry. “Happy tears” he whispered to the baby, unsure if she had understood. But the kid just turned her head back to the screen.

Stan’s tears had started falling now, and he was hugging Bill. He kept thanking Richie, and the father just smiled back, happy to see this was Stan’s reaction.

After he calmed down, he turned back to the screen. “Thanks Richie, really. I- what can I do to thank you?” He asked his friend.

“Visit?” Richie suggested, and Stan nodded.

“This thanksgiving, promise” He said.

“Can I come too?” Bill asked shyly.

“Sure! I’m sure Rachel would love to meet you too” Richie said, and Mike nodded. _Maybe,_ Mike thought, _Rachel would be confused to not see Bill with Stan. The girl seems to know more that it looks._

“Listen, I loved talking to you guys, but Bev will _kill_ me if she finds out you saw Rachel before she did. And I would like to spend at least a year with lil’ Rachel before you are left to take care of her if Bev was to kill me, so I better call her now” Richie explained.

Stan sniffed and cleaned his eyes one last time before saying “Yeah, you do that”, a big smile still on his face. With that, Bill hung up.


	3. Fashionless Bears

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry I didn't upgrade yesterday, I got stuck at the end of the chapter. Thank you for the kudos! Love you guys so much

“You bloody traitor” Bev said as soon as Richie Skyped her. Richie put his arms up in defense.

“Wha was I supposed to do? He's the-" He was cut off by her

“Godfather, yeah, I know. Stan had the kind gesture to call and tell me _everything_ ” Beverly said. Richie rolled his eyes, sighing.

“Three minutes. It took me three minutes to call you and you already know? He was crying when Bill hang up. _Crying._ How can he recover so easily?” Richie exclaimed, pushing a hand through his untamed hair.

“Easy. 'Cause he's a heartless monster” Beverly shrugged.

“That I agree on” Richie nodded. “Listen, I'm sorry okay? Are you really mad?” He asked, fidgeting for his glasses. Beverly sighed.

“No, o-of course not... I'm just... Why didn't you tell me, this morning?” She asked.

“Rachel started crying like crazy! I'm sorry, Bev, okay? I just, he's the godfather, it's only fair he met her first” Richie explained. Beverly sighed, nodding.

“Yeah, I guess so... By the way where is she?” Beverly asked.

“Where’s who?” Ben's voice came from somewhere around the room.

“Haystack, just in time for the show!” Richie exclaimed. Beverly rolled her eyes.

“Beep beep, Rich” She warned, expecting him to say the stupid comments she was used to, but Richie just shrugged.

“I'm not allowed to say anything like that around her anyway, so” He explained.

“Lemme guess, Mike said that?” Ben asked, coming into view. “Something about growing up in the right environment?”

Richie shook his head. “No, no, Stan sent me a text right after Skyping. You know, what the Godfather says, goes... I'm starting to regret my decision” He said, and Ben laughed.

“So, I've heard” He said with a cheerful grin.

“Wait you know too?” Richie asked, and Ben nodded.

“Richie! What the hell did you feed your baby!” Mike's voice echoed through the small apartment, as well as Rachel's cries, and Richie doubled in laughter.

“What did you do?” Beverly asked in her and Stan's _I-know-you-did-something_ voice, or as Richie liked to call it, their 'mom voice'.

“Nothing! Right after calling Stan, Rachel started crying and we went to change her diapers, but Mike insisted that I called you while he changed Rachel” He defended himself and Bev sighed.

“Can we see her?” She asked. The bathroom door opened, and Mike and Rachel came out.

“You can now” The elder answered, taking Rachel closer to the camera.

Now, if Beverly was crying happily, then God only knows what Ben was doing. While Bev was covering her dropped jaw with a hand, single happy tears falling down her eyes, trying to go unnoticed, Ben was a crying mess, hugging Beverly, not caring who saw.

“Oh my god Richie!” Beverly exclaimed.

“Please, don' cry, I've had enough tears for the next three weeks already” Richie whined, acting annoyed, but deep down he was happy to see the couple like that (as long as they were happy tears).

Mike patted his back. “You're gonna have ' _a lot of fun_ ' if you think that way” He warned ironically, and Richie glared at him, trying to hide his smile.

When the couple calmed down, they took another good look at Rachel.

“Um... Rich?” Beverly asked. The curly haired boy hummed.

“Yes, dear Bevvie?” Richie asked, playing with Rachel's small hands.

“You do know the kid's already like, 5 months old, right?” Beverly asked, and the two boys' surprised faces at the other side of the screen answered her question.

“That'd mean she was born around May, right?” Ben asked, quickly doing the math. Mike looked at Richie, nodding, and Richie turned Rachel to face her.

“You've been alive for five months already?!” He asked his daughter, that just looked up at her father with curious eyes.

“That actually makes so much sense” Mike muttered loud enough for everyone to hear while Rachel, suddenly tired, laid her head on her father's chest, closing her eyes and quickly falling asleep.

Ben let out a little “awww”, still slightly sniffing, and Bev sighed.

“Have you ever taken care of a baby before?” Beverly asked. Mike and Richie shared a look before shaking their heads.

“Stan was right, this isn't a good idea” She said, rubbing her eyes, starting to get nervous.

“Excuse me. Must you know, Stan totally supports me” Richie told his friend. Ben put a hand on his girlfriend's shoulder.

“Come on Bev, he'll be okay” He comforted her. “Besides, he's got Mike”

“Yeah, and Mike's just as clueless a him!” She nearly shouted. Richie shushed her, pointing at Rachel, that snoozed happily in his arms.

“Well, Stan's one call away” Mike tried to reason.

“Yeah, one call and 17 hours away!” She did shout this time. Rachel's eyes widened suddenly, and she started crying seconds later.

Richie wanted to shout. He wanted to shout so much. He wanted to shout 'Look what you did!', curse a couple of times, flip her off and shut the computer down. But he knew he couldn't. He remembered Stan's warning about his mouth getting the best of him, and replayed Ben's words in his mind.

_'Lemme guess, Mike said that? Something about growing up in the right environment?'_

The right environment definitely wasn't a mad, shouting father, or constant fights.

So, he took a deep breath, thinking someday he'd thank himself for this, and sighed. He started pacing around the room, shushing little Rachel and saying comforting words every once in a while, until she fell asleep once again. He then went to his room, feeling three pairs of eyes on his scalp, and got Rachel in bed.

He went back into the living room, sitting down, and took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes, sighing.

“Look- Bev, I understand you don't trust me for this. Who would? But please, have faith in me. I told you before, I need to stay with this kid. She needs me, and, who knows, maybe I need her.” None of the three friends had ever seen Richie this serious.

Beverly shook her head, and Richie and Mike almost never saw it, as she was hidden in Ben's arms. “No, no I do! I just- Richie, this kid, I want her to grow up with you, but I'm scared for you. What about college?”

Richie sighed. “I'm dropping out. I have to. Mike agreed to help me with the financial stuff until I get a job and win enough money” He explained, and Mike nodded.

“When my grandparents died, I was left with their fortune, plus my parent's one, that died in a fire when I was young” Mike explained. Bev sighed, and looked at Ben.

“We should help too” She told her boyfriend, who gave her a sweet smile, nodding.

“No, guys, it's alri-” Richie was cut off by Ben.

“We want to help, Richie. It's our choice, not yours. We want to” He explained. Richie sighed.

“Well yeah, but the Stan will find out, and he'll want to help too” He countered. “And then Bil- you know how Bill is, he adores Stan, always putting eyes for him and following him wherever he goes- Bill will give me money two and then he'll tell some other friend and- Oh, look at that! The whole Country wants to help! That's definitely the last thing I want.”

“You know what Rich? You have no choice. We're giving you the money, you want us or not.” She stated.

“But-” Richie started.

“Bye Rich!” Beverly said, and finished the call. Richie sighed frustratingly, pulling his hair, and flipped the dark screen off. Mike put a supportive hand on his shoulders, giving him a sad smile. Richie pointed at his face.

“Don't, I don't want pity” He said softly but determinately. Mike put his hands up in defeat. Just then, Rachel started crying.

“You want me to?” Mike asked, and Richie shook his head.

“No,” He said, standing up. “I'll go”

* * *

 

“Richie, you need to sleep” Mike said. Richie shook his head, giving Rachel a bottle.

“No way in hell” He countered. “The little monster still hasn’t eaten anything”

“let me take care of her, Rich. You _need_ to sleep” Mike emphasized, looking at the dark circles under Richie’s tired eyes. The other man simply shook his head again.

“It’s two in the morning, Mikey. You need to return to your apartment” He stated.

“And _you_ need to sleep. When was the last time you slept 5 hours in a row? I mean, come on, Rich. I can sleep here in the couch tonight, just, you go and get some rest” Mike insisted, taking Rachel from his arms and going to the kitchen too get some food for her. Richie sighed, defeated.

“Fine, if I must” He said, and he begrudgingly dragged his feet down the hall to his room.

When he arrived, he threw himself to the bed, not even changing to his pajamas, and fell asleep instantly, having missed the feeling of the soft pillow against his head, or how the mattress adjusted around his body. It felt good, to sleep.

Richie didn’t sleep with Rachel any more, (and he kind of missed the feeling of her tiny body pressed on his chest, though he’d never admit it) since Mike and him had bought a baby cot for her, along with some clothes and more accessories they thought the kid would need, plus a stuffed bear from the make-a-bear shop, that they named Rachel Jr.

Rachel had probably worse fashion taste than her father himself, and that’s saying much, since he still wears black band t-shirts with a pink, horrible flannel shirt with little flamingos on it, and some yellow jeans (yeah, that’s right, you read it correctly. Yellow jeans). Richie, always with his genius ideas, had insisted the girl picked the bear and its clothes, since it was, in fact, her bear, and it and turned out horribly.

The bear was black, with a cute, blue, little hat. It was wearing a purple dress with a t-shirt over it that read ‘I love NY’ in bold red letters, and a horrendous green flannel over it. Under the dress skirt it wore bright magenta pants, and, for the final touch, two different shoes, one being a white heel, and the other one a yellow trainer.

All in all, it was horrible.

But Rachel had been so happy when she saw the bear, that neither man could say no to it.

The cashier had pulled a weird face when he saw the bear, but hadn’t really asked any questions.

So, both Toziers and Hanlon had left the outlet, happy with their shopping, when Richie ad gotten a text from Stan, asking his if Rachel was registered.

Richie had been forced to call Melanie, seeing as he didn’t have any other choice, and had found himself involved in an unpleasant conversation that lead to knowing a few things: the kid’s birthday, 2nd May, 2018; that she wasn’t, in fact, registered; that Melanie really didn’t want anything to do with the baby, as she emphasized several times that Richie ‘Better not say she is the baby’s mother or he’ll drop dead’; that the girl had lost _a lot_ of sense of humor, but had amazingly managed to shout even _louder_ than she used to (and believe me when I say the woman shouted _loud_ ); and that she ‘Better not hear Richie’s horrendous voice again o else!’, finishing the call with a nice ‘ _see you in hell, Tozier_ ’.

So, they went to City Hall and made the registration. When the guy from the desk who assisted them, an old, short bald man that looked like he just wanted to go home, asked who the mother was, and Richie explained she didn’t have one, the man just shrugged, not asking anything, and moved on.

 _Either this guy just doesn’t feel like doing his job today,_ Richie thought, _or it’s perfectly normal for kids to not have mothers and I’ve been living under a rock._

 

* * *

 

“I’ve been looking at the radio station close to the library” Richie confessed as Mike and him flicked through the TV channels, bored, with Rachel already asleep in her baby cot, back in Richie’s room. Mike hummed, silently asking Richie to keep talking.

“I’m thinking on working there. I’ve got an interview next Friday and if everything goes well, I’ll have a job in no time” He continued, smiling to himself. “The salary is pretty nice, and with the help you guys are giving me, I’ll probably be able to push forward”

Richie was proud of himself. He wasn’t gonna deny it. He had had to drop out of college and was going through a hard time, but he was positive he could make it. And this was the start of his success as a single, lonely father who had no idea how to take care of his baby (though it doesn’t sound so good if you put it that way).

Mike smiled at his friend. “That’s great Rich! Actually,” he shifted I the sofa to face his friend. “I was looking at the library’s website and they’re looking for employees for the kids’ section. So, if the Radio station thing doesn’t work out, you can go there. And even if it does, I talked to my friend, Mark, who works at the kids section, said that they could give you a part-time job as story teller. You know, if you need to make more money” He explained.

“Story telling? Not sure I’m good at that” Richie said, looking down.

“Oh come on Rich! You’re the only person I know that actually makes the characters’ voices. It’s hilarious! The kids would love it” Mike insisted. Richie looked up at his friend.

“You think?” Mike nodded eagerly. Richie sighed, but a smile stretched through his lips.

“I’ll check it out” He said. “But how am I supposed to take care of Rachel with two jobs?”

“Easy” Mike shrugged. “Your radio station shift would be afternoon shift, right?” Richie nodded. “Great, okay, my library shift is the morning shift. So, in the morning you take care of Rachel, and in the afternoon, I take care of her” He explained.

“Okay but what about story time?” Richie asked.

“Well, story time is every Friday” Mike explained. “Radio Station is closed Fridays, am I right?” Richie nodded. “Story time is in the afternoon, so I could take care of Rachel while you’re there, or even take her to see you” Mike concluded, and Richie nodded again, liking the sound of it.

They kept watching TV in silence for a while until Richie spoke up. “He Mike?” The other boy hummed. “I was thinking, when I make enough money, maybe I’d like to move somewhere close to Seattle” Mike looked ahead for a moment, as if taking in the information, then turned to his friend and nodded.

“And I was thinking maybe you could come too?” Richie continued. Mike laughed, shaking his head.

“I can’t Rich. LA needs me” He said, and Richie looked at him with sad eyes. “Don’t give me those puppy eyes!” Mike protested. “I’m sorry, Richie, it’s true. But you go, it’s the best you can do” Mike insisted.

Richie looked down, thinking something, then back up at his friend, nodding.

“Will you visit?”

“Every year”

“Every month”

“Every semester”

“Deal”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I appreciate all the feedback. Eddie will appear in chapter five, I need to set some story stuff first. I'd like to know what you thought about this chapter! See you tomorrow, maybe?


	4. Vegetarian Turkey Part 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Update! Sorry for the long wait. I would've put a longer chapter for going MIA but I decided to separate it in two, hopefully I'll update the next one before the 1st of September.  
> Also you guys have to be patient with me plz cause I'm starting school the 6th and I won't have much time to update.  
> I'll try, promise.  
> Also if you find any errors plz tell me!!!

Richie ended up taking both the library and the radio station job, and he was great at both. Everyone enjoyed his little monologues between song and song, and the kids loved how he made a different voice for each character in the story, and how he emphasized the lines he read. All in all, Richie had quite a crowd of fans.

He wasn’t famous, of course. If you ask him, he just didn’t have time for that. He had a baby to take care of.

And, speaking of the devil, Rachel was doing great. Already 6 months old when thanksgiving rolled by, the little nougat was perfectly healthy and enjoying her first year as much as she could (her options being quite limited, as she was only 6 months old).

And, of course, as Thanksgiving rolled by, so did Ben, Bev, Bill and Stan.

It was 5 PM, and Richie and Mike where finishing putting up decorations and cooking dinner when the doorbell rang.

Rachel, who was on the sofa, watching some baby TV show, turned to the door, then to her father. Richie gave Mike the decorations he was holding, and turned to the door, walking towards it. He put his head on the door and asked:

“Who is it?”

“Pizza delivery” A female voice answered, irony dripping from her words. Richie smiled mischievously.

“I ain’t ordered no pizza” He said, and started walking away from the door.

“Richie for the love of god just open the damn door!” The female voice shouted. He ran up to the door and opened it wide enough to poke his head out without them seeing anything or being able to come in.

“Jesus, Bev, language! There’s a baby in here, ya’ know” He scolded. The ginger just rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, and I’d like to see her now” She shot back. Richie rolled his eyes.

“Yeah okay, whatever, just one sec” He said, and closed the door.

“Richie!” He heard Beverly complain, but he just smiled.

“One second!” He shouted from where he was helping Mike put the turkey in the oven.

When he finished, about 3 minutes later of an impatient Beverly complaining, he grabbed Rachel in his arms, and opened the door slowly.

“About time” He heard Bev mutter, and he chuckled to himself.

“Benny boy, Bevvie, meet lil’ Rachel” He said as he opened the door completely.

The couple’s eyes widened, and Bev immediately took Rachel in her arms, and went to sit in the couch, presenting herself to the baby.

“Well hello to you too, Miss Marsh” Richie said, and Ben chuckled, smiling wide.

“Hey man” He saluted, hugging Richie and patting him in the back. Richie smiled and hugged him back.

“Is that Mr. Hanscom and Miss Marsh I hear?” Mike asked, coming out of the kitchen, cooking gloves still on.

Ben smiled wider (if that is even possible) and walked up to his friend and hugged him. Mike grinned and hugged him back.

Beverly was busy with the baby, so she only nodded at Mike with a sweet smile, saying a quick “Hey Mike” before turning back to the baby.

“Say, Mikey boy, how’s that turkey comin’?” Richie asked in one of his accents. “Need any help, ol' buddy ol’ pal?” Ben and Mike rolled their eyes, unamused by the tall boy's accent.

“I can help him while you finish putting up the decorations, Rich” Ben said, but Richie shook his head.

“Nonsense, Haystack!” He said in a loud voice that made Beverly wince. “You have a baby to meet!” He added, sparing a glance towards Bev, before turning back to him. “Now, shoo!” He said, motioning for Ben to go to the couch. The latter rolled his eyes fondly before going to sit by his girlfriend, while Mike walked back into the kitchen, Richie following him.

As soon as they entered, Richie took a beer from the fridge and sat on the counter.

“So, when are the two princes coming?” He asked, taking a sip.

“I thought you were here to help?” Mike asked, glaring at him before turning to the oven, the smile never leaving his lips. “Bill said they'd be at the airport at around 7, and Ben and I were planning on picking them up there” He explained as he checked on the turkey. Then, he opened the fridge and took two other beers, handing them to Richie. “Now, be a dear and offer a refreshing beverage to our two guests, being the great host you are” He said, patting him in the head. Richie just laughed and shook his head, jumping off the counter and walking to the living room.

“You just keep telling yourself that, Mikey” He told him, looking over his shoulder. “We both know I'm the most terrible host there is” He sat on the couch next to Ben, handing them both their beers.

“Not on the Radio, you aren't” Ben contradicted, as he and Bev thanked him. “My ' _terrible morning traffic trip to work_ ' has turned into a ' _wonderful joke paradise trip to work_ ' since I started hearing your show”

Bev nodded. “Yeah, and I don't hate sleeping beauty's Tale anymore since Mike showed us that video of you reading it to the kids from Story-tell” She added.

Richie showed his standard cheesy grin. “I just have that charm...” He explained, winking over-exaggeratedly, causing them to laugh.

Ben looked down at his beer, and suddenly remembered. “Oh, I can't drink, we need to pick up Stan” He explained to no one in particular, setting the drink down.

“Don't worry, I'll drive” Mike assured him from the kitchen. Ben shrugged, kindly thanking Mike before taking a sip.

“But how could you not like sleeping beauty for a start?” Ben asked, turning to his girlfriend. “It's a beautiful story!”

Beverly shrugged. “If by beautiful you mean boring”

“It's not boring!” Richie chirped in, and with that, they started bickering.

 

* * *

 

Mike looked fondly at the scene in the living room, Ben and Richie having an (as it appeared) excited conversation, while Bev played around with Rachel. He sighed, suppressing a grin as Richie imitated his boss from the radio station, and went back into the kitchen, where his phone notified him of an incoming message. He took the phone, and was delighted to see it was Stan.

**_Private Chat_ **

**Stanley Uris**

_Stanford:_ Hey.

 _Stanford:_ Are Bev and Ben there yet?

 _Michelangelo:_ yea

 _Michelangelo:_ they arrived momnts ago

 _Stanford:_ Ah, that's nice.

 _Stanford:_ Well, Bill and I are still in the plane. Bill's reading a book (guess who the author is), and I'm busy trying to calm the frick down because there's a guy sitting next to us, and he fell asleep on my shoulder, and he's drooling on me. DROOLING.

 _Stanford:_ LeT Me DIe.

 _Stanford:_ Let me meet Rachel first, though.

Mike chuckled in amusement, watching as every single one of Stan's texts were perfectly punctuated, and he rolled his eyes.

 _Michelangelo:_ why do u ask

 _Stanford:_ I am sorry, but I do not seem to understand. Was that meant to be a question? There seems to be something missing at the end of the sentence.

 _Michelangelo:_ frick you stanley

 _Stanford:_ Capitalization, Michael, it's important. A person with true education should know.

 _Michelangelo:_ Are you implying that, due to my early homeschooled years, I cannot write with capitalization, nor form a sentence correctly, or punctuate it, for that matter?

 _Michelangelo:_ also hows that for capitalization and punctuation

 _Stanford:_ Of course not. My apologies if it seemed that way. I meant to imply that, being as well educated as you are, you should know these things.

 _Stanford:_ Also, at first you were doing extraordinarily great, but the second sentence ruined the charm.

 _Michelangelo:_ frick you

 _Stanford:_  Again?

 _Michelangelo:_ yes

 _Stanford:_ You need not frick me no more, as I have learned my lesson, and I will no longer correct your capitalization and punctuation.

Mike scoffed. _Really, Stan?_

 _Michelangelo:_ hOW do YoU Do iT !?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

 _Stanford:_ Well will you look at that. He punctuated. I feel like a proud teacher.

**_Stanley Uris changed their nickname to_ ** _Teacher_

**_Stanley Uris changed Mike Hanlon's nickname to_ ** _Student_

_Student:_ -.-

 _Teacher:_ Also how do I do what?

 _Student:_ MISSED A COMA! YOU MISSED A COMA, STANLEY! I AM SO DISAPOINTED!

 _Teacher:_ My apologies! I meant to say, 'Also, how do I do what?'. I am an utter disappointment. Please forgive me.

 _Student:_ not a chance

**_Mike Hanlon changed Stanley Uris' nickname to_ ** _utter disappointment_

_utter disappointment:_ Fair enough.

**_Stanley Uris changed Mike Hanlon's nickname to_ ** _Bad Influence_

_Bad Influence:_ hey why am I the bad influence your the one who made the mistake!

 _utter disappointment:_ You're*.

 _utter disappointment:_ Michael, please.

 _Bad Influence:_ you promised!

 _utter disappointment:_ That, I did.

 _utter disappointment:_ Sorry, but it appears I have changed my mind. capitalization and punctuation are more important than friendship will ever be.

 _Bad Influence:_ …

 _Bad Influence:_ -.-

 _Bad Influence:_ F

 _Bad Influence:_ R

 _Bad Influence:_ I

 _Bad Influence:_ C

 _Bad Influence:_ K

 _Bad Influence:_.

 _Bad Influence:_ Y

 _Bad Influence:_ O

 _Bad Influence:_ U

 _Bad Influence:_.

 _Bad Influence:_ S

 _Bad Influence:_ T

 _Bad Influence:_ A

 _Bad Influence:_ N

 _Bad Influence:_ L

 _Bad Influence:_ Y

 _utter disappointment:_ …

 _utter disappointment:_ The fact that you spent half a minute just to write that worries me.

 _utter disappointment:_ It even worries me more that you managed to write my name wrong.

 _Bad Influence:_ FRICK YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUHUGFVVFOSPHFIRUGHGJDFLHJITRDPGHRSELGJDREIDFSSDHUJNEJSHNHGWSMKLAPP

 _utter disappointment:_ I’ll take that as my cue to leave.

Mike sighed in frustration. Sometimes, Stanley could be so annoying.

 

Bev walked into the kitchen, greeting Mike with a smile, which he returned. She gave him a quick hug, then looked in the oven.

“Oooh, turkey” She cooed, inhaling and taking the sweet scent. “Smells delicious” She added, smiling at him.

“Thank you! It’ll be done by the time Ben and I leave for the airport, but I’ll need you and Richie to set the table” He told her.

“aww, why us? Couldn’t those two just take a cab? Lazy asses” She muttered, and Mike couldn’t help but laugh.

“They’re not lazy, it’s just that cabs are very expensive and, if we can afford to pick them up, why not? After all, we are a more reliable source. Besides, you know Stan. If he were allowed to, he’d literally walk here from the airport” He explained, and Bev rolled her eyes.

“Have you been talking with Stan lately? You sound a hella lot like him” The auburn-haired girl asked, and Mike giggled, showing her the messages.

Beverly laughed softly while reading, and rolled her eyes. As she handed him back the phone, she said, “The day Stanley Uris makes a grammar mistake, it will be stated that his phone was stolen”. Mike laughed and nodded, and Beverly leaned against the counter, where Mike was cooking something else. “So, watcha’ doing?” She asked.

“Well, I’m having some snacks done, and I’m making the sauce for the turkey” Mike explained, getting back to work. Beverly licked her lips.

“mmmm, sauce” She attempted to dip her finger in the bowl, but Mike swatted her hand away.

“If you come to the kitchen, you come to help” He said in a warning voice, though he was smiling.

“Okay then, what can I do?” Beverly asked.

“We should probably make a salad for Stan, or something chicken-free or whatever. You think you can handle that?” Mike asked, and Beverly nodded, getting to work.

 

* * *

 

A good twenty minutes after they had started, with Beverly still making the salad, claiming that Stan is a ‘special little prick’, and dancing to the beat of Madonna, coming from Bev’s phone, Ben came in with a smile in his face.

“Hey man” he greeted Mike, quickly pecking Bev in the cheek as he passed next to her. “, Richie sent me to get some beers, Rachel won’t get off of him and he couldn’t stand up” He explained as he opened the refrigerator and took some beers out.

“ ** _*cough*_** _lazy ***cough***_ ” Beverly exclaimed, and Ben rolled his eyes.

“What are you doing, Bevvie?” He asked as he closed the door and opened a few cupboards, searching for snacks.

“Stan’s salad” Was his girlfriend’s simple response, as she was focused on cutting the fresh onions without crying. _Dammit, Stanley,_ she thought, _why onions? And must they be fresh? Sneaky little prick._

Mike handed Ben a bowl with pistachios, as well as Rachel’s feeding bottle. “Do the honors” He said, patting him in the back, then bowing slightly, motioning towards the door.

Ben nodded, mouthing thanks, and left before Bev found out he was going to give Rachel a bottle, as she would give the salad up, and Stan would be furious if he had to eat turkey (But that obviously wouldn’t happen, as Mike had everything under control and could easily make the salad himself).

Mike laughed a bit to himself and shook his head. His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he checked to see yet again that it was Stanley.

 _utter disappointment:_ It appears we meet again.

 _Bad Influence:_ so it does

 _Bad Influence:_ to what do I own the pleasure stanley?

 _utter disappointment:_ Bill fell asleep on me too. It appears I’m all alone, and who better to talk to, than you?

Mike snorted. _Me? The bad influence? If he wants to talk to me of all people, I wonder how the others are._

 _Bad Influence:_ ok

 _utter disappointment:_ Remind me again why we use frick?

 _Bad Influence:_ because richie cant curse in front of rachel (courtesy of you) and he thinks if he even reads a curse he’ll start cursing as a sailor

 _Bad Influence:_ which is tru

 _Bad Influence:_ that’s why he only reads baby books now

 _Bad Influence:_ at least theres no cursing there

 _Bad Influence:_ tho he doesnt read much anyways for that matter

 _Bad Influence:_ why u ask? dont you like it?

 _utter disappointment:_ It sounds childish and stupid.

 _utter disappointment:_ It fits Richie perfectly.

 _utter disappointment:_ Still, I don’t find myself comfortable writing it.

 _Bad Influence:_ Would you prefer to write a normal curse?

 _utter disappointment:_ I’d prefer not to write a curse even better, to be honest.

 _Bad Influence:_ yea we all know that

 _utter disappointment:_ Good. How are the others?

 _Bad Influence:_ well Ben is giving Rachel a bottle, he and Richie are both on their second beer, and bev apparently cant chop carrots

 _Bad Influence:_ im just cooking trying not to lmao

 _utter disappointment:_ Okay. Cooking. You do that. I must talk to Richie now.

Mike looked at the screen with a puzzled expression, and Bev seemed to notice.

“What’s wrong?” She asked. He shrugged and showed her the texts.

“Hey, I can chop carrots, thank you very much!” She exclaimed, and Mike burst out in giggles, Richie snickering in the other room.

* * *

 

Richie was telling Ben about his colleagues in the radio station when his phone buzzed. He unlocked it to see two messages from Stan.

“What is it?” Ben asked, peaking into the screen as he gave Rachel a bottle. Richie shrugged and opened the messages.

**_Private Chat_ **

**Stanley Uris**

_Satan:_ Hey.

 _Satan:_ You.

 _Devil:_ wat

 _Satan:_ I’m just going to ignore that.

 _Satan:_ Don’t you dare get yourself or those around you drunk in front of my god daughter.

 _Satan:_ And no smoking while Ben and Mike are out.

 _Satan:_ I know Bev is going to try to bribe you, and you’re most likely to fall for it if not warned, so don’t.

 _Devil:_ oh come on

 _Devil:_ frick you

 _Satan:_ Frick me all you want, it won’t change a thing.

 _Devil:_ o.o

 _Satan:_ Alright that came out wrong.

 _Devil:_ wait- how do you know about the beer?

 _Satan:_ Mike told me

“Michael you TRAITOR!” Richie’s voice echoed through the apartment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so! Hope you liked that. THe next chapter is the continuation of Thanksgiving, with Bill and Stan. As chapter four has been sparated into two, I'm afraid Eddie won't appear untill chapter six.  
> Patience, my Friends.  
> ANYWAY  
> Tell me your thoughts! Did you like it? Was it too much? I'm ope to suggestions on the next chapter, if you think there's anything that should happen.  
> I appreciate the comments and kudos and I hope you're enjoying this little fic. If you have any question, please do ask.  
> KUDOS!


	5. Vegetarian Turkey Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me? Posting? What?
> 
> Sorry this took so long guys! This chapter was log and hard to write, plus I started school which steals a lot of time.  
> Anyway, long chapter to make up for it!

“We’ll be here at around seven thirty. Don’t touch the food- you have to set the table though. And finish putting the decorations! No smoking” Mike gave them a warning look, before shutting the door behind him.

A few seconds after, anyhow, he opened it again, peaking his head inside. “Try not to burn the house down” He added with a smug, but somehow comforting, smile, and shut the door behind him once again.

As soon as they we out ear shot, Beverly turned to face her friend.

“Wanna smoke?” She asked innocently, taking out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. Richie just shook his head, pushing the two items back towards her.

“I can’t, Bev, you know that” He pointed behind him to the toddler that was sitting on the couch, watching Peppa Pig like it was the next big thing. Beverly gasped.

“You’re quitting on cursing AND smoking? Those are, like the two things that resemble you. They _scream_ Richie Tozier! Man, you must really be serious about this” She attempted to joke, but it came out flat. Richie rolled his eyes and turned around, grabbing Rachel with one arm, pulling her onto his waist, before turning once more and going into the kitchen.

“Now, hurry up” He called from where he stood, taking the cutlery out from the drawer. “I need some help over here”

Beverly paused, shocked, but decided to follow his orders. They set the table in silence and, when Richie was beginning to take out the remaining decorations, Beverly let out a huff, causing him to glance at her.

Rachel on her hip, Beverly started to pace around the room. “What happened to you, Rich? You’re not the guy I used to know. You’re not the guy I fought Gretta Keene for back in middle school. You don’t curse anymore, you don’t joke anymore… Hell, you hardly ever laugh! You’re…” She stopped and turned, locking eyes with him, and squinted hers, studying him. “…different” She finished after a beat of silence.

The taller man just shrugged it off, going back to pulling the last boxes out. “I guess I’m just too busy. Rachel needs quite the attention, I don’t have time for jokes” He explained vaguely, but Beverly didn’t buy it.

“Stop!” She put Rachel down, pointing an accusing finger at him. “That right there. That’s the problem. You’re eating your head way too much” She started walking towards him until the tip of her finger met his chest. “If you think for _one_ second that I chose to have faith on you for taking care of Rachel because I believed you’d change to be a ‘better man’, then you are terribly wrong, young mister. I chose to have faith in you because of who you are. I chose to have faith in loud, obnoxious, no-filter Richie Trashmouth Tozier, not caring, professional, goody-two-shoes Richard Tozier”

Richie swallowed strongly _God she sounds like my mother._ “But Stanley said-”

“To hell with what Stanley said! For all I know, he’s no better. Sucks for him if he can’t see past his own nose, but honestly, I’d prefer ten times having a father who’s loud, a total disaster, tells the most horrible jokes and makes every other mistake, than a boring, uptight father that wouldn’t be able to fill the shoes of the mother who _abandoned_ me. So, grow a pair and tell your Stanny boy that this is _your_ daughter and _you_ are gonna educate her how _you_ think correct. Understood?” She shouted, and Richie nodded vigorously.

“Yes, ma’am” He agreed.

“I’m not your mother!” Beverly shouted again, and Richie put his hands on her shoulders.

“Bev, chillax. I said ma’am, not mom.” He rubbed her shoulders lightly. “Man, the alcohol is really making effect on you and you only had, like, one beer? Are you still the lame lightweight I knew back in high school?” He said, playing his cheesy smile. Beverly rolled her eyes, but a smile ghosted on her lips.

“Seriously, though” He said, looking back at his daughter. “I wasn’t lying when I told you the kid was deaf. I mean, that was a hell of a tantrum, and she didn’t even flinch. I might have to take her to the hospital”

Bev did smile now, swatting his arm playfully. “Come on, let’s give this house some Christmas spirit” She said, grabbing some decorations.

“A-papapapa, hold on right there, missy” Richie said, holding up a hand and taking out his phone. “What’s the point of Christmas spirits if there’s no Christmas carols?” He asked, and seconds later, jingle bells started to play.

They danced around he beat of the holiday music, while putting Christmas decorations out and about, all around the house, and even dressing Rachel up as a reindeer (Bev made the costume herself, and, surprisingly, it only took 37 minutes and Richie's horrendous light brown wool sweater's sacrifice, which ended up in the cutest 5-month-old kid's costume ever, courtesy of her mayor in Fashion). They ended up covered up in fake snow, laughing crazily, laying on the floor with Rachel between them, completely unaware of the situation.

“See this is what I mean!” Beverly explained as they calmed down. “But seriously, though” she said, reaching out for his hand. “I missed this”

“Yeah” Richie agreed, sighing. “, me too”

They stayed there in silence for a few minutes, until Richie spoke up.

“How’s your aunt?” He asked.

Beverly gapped a bit, shocked by the sudden question. “I-I don’t know, I haven’t heard of her in a while” She admitted. Richie smiled cockily, and Bev already knew where this was going. That was his ‘I’m-going-to-make-a-joke-now’ face.

“Well I have. Yesterday, actually. Quite a funny story, see-” Richie started, but was cut off by Beverly sitting up abruptly.

“Okay, okay, okay, maybe the jokes aren’t _that_ necessary” She quickly said, but Richie just laughed.

“Of course they are, Bevvie! For who is a comedian without his humor?” He countered.

“Okay first of all, you’re not even comedian-”

“yet”

“Yeah, okay, yet, whatever. Second, Beep Beep” She scolded. Richie rolled his eyes.

“You’re still using that?” He asked.

“I said, _BEEP BEEP,_ idiot”

“Okay, okay, I’ll shut up!”

 

* * *

 

“So, how's it living with Richie?” Ben asked as he looked out the window, the streets of LA passing quickly enough for him to spot the library and the Radio Station, that were a few blocks away from each other.

Mike glanced at him for a second before turning his eyes back to the road, shrugging. “I don't _live_ with him...” Mike reminded him. “I mean” He continued. “, I've stayed over a few nights, and it seems he really has everything under control. He's a bit different, though. Doesn't joke that much anymore”

“Well, if I were a 20-year-old single college dropout father that had two jobs, I don't think I'd exactly be partying, either” Ben said, shrugging.

“As long as Rachel is okay...” Mike mused, sighing, and Ben nodded in agreement, but he noticed Mike wasn't smiling half as much as he usually did.

“Don't you think he can do this?” He asked, ready to support Richie. Ben loved all of his friends and didn't enjoy taking parts in arguments, but with Richie absent and unable to defend himself, it seemed only fair he chose his side. Mike shook his head.

“No- Of course I do! Just, he knows nothing about parenting” Mike explained.

“Neither do you” Ben raised a brow, looking at him with a skeptical expression.

“Exactly! What the hell are we supposed to do?” The other man exclaimed. “I trust that Richie can keep her safe and healthy, but can he teach her things like empathy, or respect? And you know how Richie was- well, still is. What if Rachel learns her father's habits? What then?” He sighed. “Richie has never had a father figure, nor mother, for that matter. How is he supposed to know what to do?”

Ben shrugged, looking out the window. “Personally, I don't think parenting is about right or wrong. It's about helping your child do things right, and not make your mistakes. There is no right way for doing that, it's just the way it is. Every parent teaches their kid something different, because every parent has made their own mistakes. Sure, it's a parent’s responsibility to make sure their child doesn't learn bad habits, but that is up to them. Parenting isn't something you learn. It's more like an instinct. Seeing your child do something and deciding how to react. It's not something you can teach. Sure, one can remember something their parent taught them and teach their child the same thing, but that doesn't mean they have to be like their parents in that aspect. If you really are afraid of Richie's past, I can assure you he will not make the same mistakes his parents did. Because he learned from those mistakes. So, I am confident Richie will be the best father Rachel could ever have, because it's _her_ father.”

Mike was so shocked by Ben's words he missed the exit and had to take the long way. “I... guess you're right. God, of course you're right, you're the smartest person I know. We should probably give you and Bev the baby” He joked, and Ben flashed him a smile, laughing lightly.

“Now, eyes on the price” He said, pointing at the road. “If we haven't arrived when Stan gets out, he's gonna murder us.”

Mike laughed. “Too bad we're his ride, then” He stated, shrugging.

!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡

Halfway through their little trip to the airport, Ben's phone buzzed, and he was surprised to see it was Bill.

**_Group Chat_ **

**Derry the Hell Hole**

**_Bill Denbrough, Mike Hanlon, Ben Hanscom_ **

_Bill on a Hill:_ Stan has been trying to contact Mike for 20 mins now

 _Bill on a Hill:_ where r u?

 _Ben on a Hen:_ In the car

 _Ben on a Hen:_ On our way

 _Ben on a Hen:_ Mikes driving

 _Bill on a Hill:_ O.o okay

 _Bill on a Hill:_ how long till you arrive???

 _Ben on a Hen:_ 10 mins

 _Ben on a Hen:_ Why?

 _Ben on a Hen:_ U already there?

 _Bill on a Hill:_ Nope

 _Bill on a Hill:_ 5 mins left

“Bill says they arrive in five minutes” Ben informed Mike, who nodded.

 _Ben on a Hen:_ How long will it take for you to come out?

 _Bill on a Hill:_ well we have to pick up our luggage

 _Bill on a Hill:_ so assuming we don't get lost, another 7 mins

 _Ben on a Hen:_ Kay

Ben looked up to see the building coming closer, and turned to Mike.

“I thought you missed the exit” He told his friend, who shrugged.

“I took a short cut” He answered.

“How could you take a short cut? We're in the highway!” Ben asked. Mike just turned to him and winked, whispering “magic” as he looked back to the road.

 _Ben on a Hen:_ We're almost there

 _Be on a Hen:_ Turns out Mike's a wizard

 _Bill on a Hill:_ we just arrived

 _Bill on a Hill:_ but make that 12 mins

 _Ben on a Hen:_ Why?

 _Bill on a Hill:_ Stan is scolding the guy who fell asleep on him

 _Bill on a Hill:_ it's hilarious

 _Ben on a Hen:_ Oh I wanna see

 _Ben on a Hen:_ Send a video

 _Bill on a Hill:_ sorry cant

 _Ben on a Hen:_ Frick you

“They just arrived” Ben told Mike, who nodded, as they looked for a parking spot. “They're gonna take long though- Over there, next to the red car-, ‘cause Stan is scolding a guy”

Mike rolled his eyes. “Lemme guess, is it the one who drooled all over him?”

Ben nodded. “If by drooled on you mean fell asleep on then yes, that's him.”

Mike parked, and they went up to the building. They walked over to the arrivals' zone and stood by gate 2, where Bill and Stan would walk out from any minute.

 

* * *

 

“Hey Bev?” Richie asked, and the girl hummed. “I was thinking on moving to Seattle”

After playing around for a little longer, Beverly had noticed it had started snowing outside. “Snowing in November? In _LA_?” She had asked the parent, shocked, but they hadn't needed anyone to tell them twice before they were outside in the park, in their snow clothes, (Rachel in her baby cart, a thick towel wrapped around her, and her reindeer costume under it) making snow angels, playing snowball fights and putting Rachel in the floor so she could enjoy the snow (spoiler alert, she didn't).

They had even made a snowman, and Richie had taken a picture of Rachel and Beverly with it. “We're so gonna frame this and put it in her room” Richie had said, and the suddenly he had the best idea. “You like traditions, right?” He had asked the auburn-haired woman, who had shaken her head in denial. “Whatever, doesn't matter. How about, every year, when it snows and we're together, we make a snowman and you take a picture with Rachel like this? But only once a year” He had suggested, and Beverly clapped happily in excitement.

After that, they had walked home, given Rachel a shower, and sat on the sofa while she slept in her cot.

Richie had suddenly remembered what he and Mike had talked about not long ago, and decided to tell Bev.

The girl was now looking at him in shock.

“A-are you serious?” She managed to ask.

“I mean” Richie said, pushing a hand through his wild curls. “, yeah? Like, not right now, but maybe in the future? I just thought it'd be better to have you and Stan closer, and...” He shrugged. “I dunno”

“I... I mean I'd love to have you closer... But what about Mike?” Beverly asked.

The tall boy sighed. “Unfortunately, he can't come. But, he's been very supportive about the subject, and wants me to do it. He said he'd come visit twice a year” He explained, and Beverly nodded slowly, taking the sudden information in. “Plus” Richie added with a cocky smile. “, Stan says that's where all the cute ladies are” He wiggled his eyebrows and Beverly rolled her eyes.

“Stan's gay.” She deadpanned. “There is no way in heaven and hell that he'd tell you that, Rich.”

Richie shrugged. “Maybe so”

They stayed in silence for a few minutes, until Beverly spoke up.

“Okay” She whispered.

“Okay?” Richie asked. She nodded.

“Okay”

“...Okay, what?” He asked, not really following. Beverly rolled her eyes.

“Okay, you move to Seattle, idiot” She explained. “I approve” Richie smiled and nodded.

“Okay”

“Shut up”

 

* * *

 

It had been twenty minutes, and Stan and Bill had yet to show up.

“God dammit, what’s wrong?” Mike muttered to himself as he sent yet another message to Stan. Giving up, sensing the other man wouldn’t read them any time soon, he went to ‘Derry the Hell Hole’ group chat.

**_Group Chat_ **

**Derry the Hell Hole**

**_Bill Denbrough, Mike Hanlon, Ben Hanscom_ **

_Mike on a Bike:_ Billlllllll

 _Mike on a Bike:_ where are you

 _Mike on a Bike:_ why isnt stan checking his phone

 _Bill on a Hill:_ we’re in security

 _Mike on a Bike:_ wat the frick?! what happened?!

 _Bill on a Hill:_ sleepy guy ws about to hit Stan when a security guy came nd said “you two, come with me”

 _Bill on a Hill:_ also stans phone died

 _Ben on a Hen:_ Are you in trouble?

 _Bill on a Hill:_ no just answerin some questions

 _Mike on a Bike:_ oh okay

 _Mike on a Bike:_ well call us when you come out

“Can you believe it?” Ben asked, turning to his friend. “Stan, taken to a police office, by a police officer”

“I was actually waiting for the day Stan would handcuff a cop and take them to their own police office because they didn’t fore fill their duty” Mike confessed, and Ben started laughing.

Just then, Mike’s phone buzzed. “Oh, must be Bill” He said, and picked up.

“Hey buddy, you came out alright?” He asked.

Ben noticed how, suddenly, Mike’s expression changed to a confused one.

“You got what? Bill, Bill please calm down, I can’t understand you” He said raggedly.

“What’s wrong?” Ben asked him.

‘ _they got lost_ ’ Mike mouthed back. “Okay- okay, Bill, can you, just, tell me what you see?”

They waited for a moment and suddenly Mike exclaimed “The hell are you doing in gate 5?”

Ben and him immediately jumped up and started walking towards gate 5.

“Okay, Bill, just stay where you are, oka- Bill? Do you hear me? Bill? Argh, dammit” Mike cursed as he looked at his phone’s screen.

“Come on,” Ben told him. “let’s just get to gate 5”

!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡

When they were by gate 4, Ben’s phone ringed. “Bill? What’s wrong?” He asked as he picked up. He listened for a bit, then turned to Mike.

“Oh- okay, okay, yeah, be there in 5” He said, then hang up “They’re back at gate 2” He deadpanned. Mike sighed, exasperated.

“What?!” He choked out. Ben shook his head. “He said Stan found the way back. They’re already there, waiting for us” He explained as they turned around and started walking towards gate 2.

They arrived a few minutes later, finding Bill sitting down, playing with the phone, while Stan stood, staring at them expectantly, arms crossed.

“You’re late” He stated. When Mike’s face broke into a frown, his broke into a smile and he hugged the taller man. “Don't you worry, I forgive you” The curly haired boy added, and Mike scoffed, smiling nonetheless.

“Apology accepted” The taller man added, hugging Stan back while Ben went to salute Bill.

“Made it out alive?” He asked him, and Bill looked up at him, a warm and welcoming smile dancing in his lips.

“Guess so” He said before hugging Ben.

Ben then went to say hi to Stan and Mike hugged Bill.

!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡

“So how was the flight?” Mike asked as he took the exit and drove into the streets of LA.

“It was good” Bill shrugged just as Stan groaned, exclaiming “It was a horrendous, everlasting nightmare!”

Ben laughed lightly. “C'mon Stan, it w-wasn't that bad” Bill cooed, but Stan simply muttered “Easy for you to say, you weren't being drooled on”, causing the boys to giggle.

Bill put a hand on Stan shoulder, and the latter visibly relaxed. “Sorry, it just wasn't my best flight” Stan explained, and the others nodded.

“If it makes you feel any better” Mike said, trying to lighten the mood. “Once you go on a flight with Richie, a stranger drooling you is like a child's giggle ten miles away... if that makes any sense”

Stan smiled and nodded. “I believe you”

Ben's phone buzzed once, and he checked his messages.

**_Private Chat_ **

**Richie Tozier**

_Trashmouth:_ Hey

 _Haystack:_ Hey

 _Trashmouth:_ Hey

 _Haystack:_ Hey

 _Trashmouth:_ Hey

“Oh no” Ben groaned, and the other three men in the car gave him a puzzled expression. “I think Richie's bored”

“That can't be good” Bill said, faking a worried tone. “And Bev's with him”

Stan sighed, shaking his head. “Mike, hit the gas. I'd like to meet my god daughter alive and in one piece” He ordered.

* * *

 

**_Private Chat_ **

**Ben Hanscom**

_Trashmouth:_ Hey

 _Haystack:_ Hey

 _Trashmouth:_ Hey

 _Haystack:_ Hey

 _Trashmouth:_ Hey

 _Haystack:_ Hey

 _Trashmouth:_ Hey

 _Haystack:_ Hey

 _Trashmouth:_ Hey

 _Haystack:_ Hey

 _Trashmouth:_ Hey

 _Haystack:_ why are we doing this?

 _Trashmouth:_ the real question is why did we stop?

Bev was giggling crazily, looking at Richie’s phone screen, Rachel asleep between them, as they laid on the floor again, surrounded by fake snow.

Richie was also laughing, shaking uncontrollably, making it hard to type.

“Oh my… oh my god! What are…? Why are we even laughing!” Beverly exclaimed, hugging Rachel and patting her head.

The door flew open and four men stood on the door way.

“My suspicions have been proven true” Stan muttered, looking at the supposed adults laying on the floor.

“Are you d-drunk?” Bill asked, as they entered the apartment, careful not to step on anything, and he was answered by a very unconvincing _'no'_ coming from Bev.

“She is,” Richie said, and Bev punched him, pouting. “Or at least I think so,” He continued “She took two beers, but I'm pretty sure she's a lightweight”

“Am _not_ ” Beverly complained, dragging the _o_.

Stan sighed deeply as he picked up Rachel, doing it so causal it looked like he had known her his whole life. Mike and Ben sat down on the sofa (taking the fake snow off it), while Bill went over to see Rachel, that was playing with Stan's polo's collar.

“Exactly why did you decorate the house with Christmas decorations?” Ben asked.

“Y-yeah, Christmas isn't until next month” Bill added, and, oh, did he regret it. The curly-haired boy and the auburn-haired girl looked at each other, and exclaimed “Happy 30 days to Christmas!”, before exploding into a fit of laughter.

Stan, who was rocking Rachel in his arms, rolled his eyes motioning for Bill to take the baby, and walked to the pair. “This is why we Jewish don't celebrate Christmas” he muttered, stretching both his arms for his childhood friends to grab. “Okay, up!” He exclaimed, and pulled, actually making a 'hmpf' sound from the effort. “God, you need to take a diet” He said, and they laughed.

“Okay” Mike stood. “I'm gonna take the food out, you guys clean up a bit.” He said, and disappeared into the kitchen. Bill, Bev and Ben started moving, but Stan noticed Richie take Rachel in his arms.

“What are you doing, Rich?” He asked.

“Gonna put the little avocado to sleep” The taller man explained. Stan rose a brow, putting his master 'you-just-said-something-stupid' poker face.

“Did you just call your daughter an avocado?” He asked, not believing his ears. Richie looked at him casually for a solid two seconds before he burst out laughing.

“That I did, Stan the Man”

“Don't call me that” The biologist protested, but couldn't hide the small smile forming on his lips as he remembered the childhood nickname.

_Stan met Richie in kindergarten, in their first day. He had been 3 years old then, and even at his age, some of his behaviors made it obvious that he'd grow to have OCD. They had been taken to the playground, but it had rained the day before and the floor was wet, full of puddles and mud, so Stan was reluctant to go in. He had stopped walking, and someone behind him poked his back. Stan turned around to see a kid with curly hair, narrowing his eyes at him. Stan felt scared under the gaze at first, but then realized there was no hatred in the boy's eyes. He was scrunching his nose almost as if he was concentrating deeply on Stan's face. His eyes opened a bit wider, but his nose stayed the way it was._

_“Wa's wrong with your eyes?” He asked the kid, who shrugged, finally relaxing his nose._

_“Dunno, can't see anything” He explained. “Why'd ya stop?” He asked._

_Stan turned around to look at the playground. “I don't like mud. Mud is dirty, it's bad” He mumbled quietly, almost to himself, but while the other kid was clearly blind, he had good hearing senses, and heard him say it. “I'm Stan” He added, seeing as he hadn't presented himself._

_The blind kid nodded, a stupid smile making its way to his face. “Well dontcha worry, Stan the Man, ‘cause Richie is gonna save you!” He exclaimed. He walked into the playground, and Stan turned to let him in, looking astonished at Richie for his supposed bravery._

_Of course, he didn't take into count that Richie was half-blind, and the curly-haired kid only managed to take three straight steps before stepping on the mud, splashing some on Stan's coat and face. Stan instantly felt his face burn and felt the need to shower and cry and scream, and soon hot tears were falling on his mud strained face. Richie, having only soaked his worn-out trainers, instantly felt bad as he watched the crying kid in front of him._

_So, he did a very Richie thing. He knelt down, ruining his new jeans, and grabbed a handful of mud, and splashed it on his own face, leaving Stan once again surprised, enough for him to stop crying._

_“Why'd you do that?” Stan sniffed. Richie shrugged._

_“It wasn't fair. Now it's fair” Is all he said._

_Stan smiled and hugged his mud strained friend (he supposed they were friends now), and thanked him._

_Maybe mud wasn't so bad after all._

Richie all but gave him a cheesy smile in return. “Wanna come with me?” He asked, and Stan looked back at his friends.

“We should help” He stated, though unconvincingly.

“The B team will be fine” Richie shrugged, and Stan couldn't help but smile at the stupid name Richie had used for the group Bill, Ben and Bev made.

“Fine, let's go” He ushered Richie to the hall, as if he was afraid they'd get caught.

Once in Richie's (and now Rachel's) room, Stan scrunched up his nose in disgust. The room was very messy, books and clothes laying everywhere, along with baby toys, all thrown away absentmindedly and without care nor second thoughts. He didn't do anything about it though, even if he had to bite his tongue until it bled to stop his OCD from acting, because the room felt familiar. It felt like home.

CDs and music pieces stalked everywhere, piles of books and magazines, an open closet full of flannels and (probably used) underwear, a microphone and a piano that looked like they hadn't been used in a while (probably since Rachel arrived), a half-made bed (probably given up on, knowing Richie and his habit of laying on a bed instead of doing it when supposed to), and posters of his favorite bands. A faint, yellowish light, and the faint scent of the last cigarette he had, along with some cologne and something that was just Richie. The room screamed _RICHIE!_ In more than one way.

Stan wouldn't want it any other way.

Plus, he needed to control his OCD, knowing a lot of people in campus already hated him for his habits. And, besides, Rachel's side was mostly clean. Mostly.

Richie put Rachel down on her cot, and Stan sat on the bed next to it, while Richie sat on the floor.

Before Stan could expect it, Richie started to sing, rocking the cot.

_Black birds,_

_I'm seeing black birds,_

_black birds and widows,_

_singing alone._

_Black birds,_

_I'm seeing black birds,_

_black birds and widows,_

_don't get along._

_Black birds and widows,_

_so common, so different,_

_always seem to be out at night._

_Black birds,_

_I'm seeing black birds,_

_black birds and widows,_

_hide from the light._

_Black birds,_

_I'm seeing black birds,_

_black birds that only_

_under the moon fly._

_Black birds and widows_

_don't know love,_

_once did though,_

_before their lives turned gloom and dark._

_Black birds and widows_

_once knew love,_

_bot now don't,_

_when their lives were happy and bright._

_Black birds,_

_I'm seeing black birds,_

_sometimes I wonder,_

_where they ever white?_

Stan hadn't heard Richie sing since before graduation. Last time he remembered Richie sing that song, he hadn't been allowed to go near Beverly.

His parents had been amazing people when Richie and him where young, and treated Stan as their own son. But as the boys grew up, Went had problems with work, and boys started chasing after Maggie. There were fights and shouting, smoking and alcohol. Richie's parents were either drunk or missing whenever he came home, and didn't care about him anymore. Christmas Eves were spent alone, New Year's countdown always under the bed covers, Birthday cake was cheap and came from the school cafeteria, and Summer vacations were spent at either his or Bev's house.

It wasn't surprising to anyone when Richie started smoking along with Beverly, though Stan didn't like it one bit.

However, when the drugs started, Stan knew he had to do something about it.

Richie was 15 at that time, and spent the days ghosting around town, smoking, and ditching school. It was the year Melanie came to school. Melanie was understanding, smart and sweet, and would always make Richie smile. They clicked almost instantly. (Stan was very bothered by the fact that Melanie decided to abandon Richie and Rachel. He really liked the girl, and was surprised she'd do something like that. He and Melanie used to be very good friends.)

With Melanie's help, Richie got back on track, being the same loud, obnoxious Trashmouth they all knew. He quit the drugs, but smoking was a harder fight. Still, every time Stan frowned when Bev and Richie went for a smoke, Melanie reminded him they were one step closer to winning it.

Soon enough, Melanie and Richie started dating. Richie was so happy he even told his parents, sober for once, and they were happy for him.

But then, one of Maggie's boy-toys saw Beverly and Richie smoke one day, and it all went to hell.

Since Richie hadn't given too many details about his girlfriend, Maggie instantly believed it was Bev, and had heard rumors about the ginger girl.

Richie got hurt that night, badly, and his mother forbid him from going near Beverly, threatening on calling the police or the Marsh family.

Stan's hear broke when he saw Richie alone in the street, bruised and beaten and bleeding, crying and singing the song he was singing now.

Stan knew Richie's voice was beautiful, but he didn't know it'd become even more so when he grew up.

“Stan, you with me?” Richie brought Stan out of his thoughts. The biologist shook his head.

“Yeah, no, I'm here” He said, offering his friend a smile. Richie nodded and stood up, patting Stan's head.

“Let us go back then, I can already smell that delicious turkey-free turkey of yours” He said, a stupid grin plastered on his face, earning an eye roll from Stan.

* * *

 

**_ONE WEEK LATER_ **

“Who's gonna miss Aunt Bevvie? Who's gonna miss her? That's right, you are!” Beverly was cooing to a clueless Rachel, smiling dumbly as Ben and Mike carried the last three suitcases to the taller man's car. Bill and Stan were talking by the door, while Richie loaded his car.

As Richie put the last bag in the car, he managed to catch a glimpse of Bill and Stan holding hands as they went into Mike's car, and he smiled to himself.

He could still remember how, a week ago, on thanksgiving's dinner, a stuttering Bill and a red Stan confessed they were dating. It reminded Richie of when Stan came out to him.

_“Rich?” Stan called out with a trembling voice. “I need to tell you something.”_

_They were drunk. Richie knew that. He had known since he took his first shot. They were drunk and 16 and in trouble and now Stan was going to confess something and he looked so_ scared _._

_They had done something illegal, Richie knew. He also knew Stan hadn't wanted to go in the first place. It had been Richie who forced him. Melanie was out of town and unable to stop them. And now they were drunk. They were drunk and alone and scared and they were in the police office and they were in, oh, so much trouble._

_And now Stan was silently crying and Richie didn't know what to do._

_“What is it, Stan the Man?” Richie attempted to lighten the mood with the nickname, but it just fell flat._

_“I... Please, please don't hate me! I know I'm different, and weird, and probably disgusting but I just need to tell someone and- oh, my parents are gonna be so mad and they're gonna ground me-”_

_Stan as drunk, Richie knew that. He knew because Stan couldn't stay calm, and Stan_ always _kept calm. He knew because Stan was having a panic attack, and Stan_ never _had a panic attack. He knew because Stan was rambling, and Stan_ never _rambled. He probably knew for many reasons more, but he wasn't about to think about them at the moment. Because Stan was drunk, and Stan was his friend. And friends help each other. At least that's what Melanie always said._

_“Hey, Stan” Richie hugged his friend. “You're literally one of the only friends I have. DO you honestly think I'd hate you?” He said, smiling genuinely._

_Stan shrugged, sniffing, and looked up at his friend. “...I think... I think I'm gay”_

_Richie's smile grew even wider. “Why there's nothing to worry about! Why should I care who you like? I'm still gonna love and annoy you even beyond the grave, my dearest bird man!”_

_Stan sniffed again, a glint of hope shinning in his eyes. “Really?” He asked. “You don't think I'm disgusting?” Richie chuckled. “Oh Staniel. Think about this way. Imagine Melanie was a boy. And I loved her smile, her eyes, her loyalty, I loved her in general. Or him, in this case. Would you hate me for loving him for who he is?”_

_Stan lowered his gaze and shrugged. “I guess not”_

_“Then what’s the problem with you loving a boy?” Richie asked, grinning at his friend. A smile tugged at Stan’s lips as he shrugged again._

_Suddenly, Richie’s grin turned into a frown. “Wait, you don’t mean… like, you don’t like_ me _, right?”_

_“What? Ew, no! You’re literally the last person I’d fall in love with!” Stan exclaimed._

_Richie laughed. “Geez Stan, I’ flattered” Stan rolled his eyes, punching his best friend’s arm playfully._

Richie crouched down in front of Stan’s side car window and tapped on it. Stan rolled it down.

“Have a nice flight, you two” He said, to what Stan smiled and nodded, and Bill answered with a ‘thanks, Rich’. “Did you have fun?”

Bill nodded vigorously. “It was great, Richie. Thanks for letting us stay at your place” He smiled warmly.

“No problem, my dear friend” Richie ginned back.

During the week, Stan and Bill had stayed with Richie and Rachel, while Ben and Beverly went over to Mike’s, though they spent most of their time at Richie’s playing games and goofing around.

Stan nodded, agreeing with Bill. “It was really nice. I’m surprised with how well you handled the situation”

“And what is that supposed to mean?” Richie asked, and amused smile painted on his lips.

“Well,” Stan explained. “according to statistics, 98.3% of your ‘I-can-handle-it situations’ have ended not so handled, and, surprisingly,” Stan took a moment to reconsider. “or maybe not, considering the mess you are, Bev and I had to do with more than the 65% of said situations. And, of course, by ‘had to do with’, I mean you dragging us into things we don’t want to do.”

Richie looked at the bird-watcher’s hazel eyes, blinked two times, before barking out a laugh.

“Yeah, okay, well, guess what else statistics say?” He countered. “Apparently, if you eat a chicken, and I eat none, we’ve each eaten half a chicken”

Stan shook his head, a blank expression in his face. “Impossible. I don’t eat chicken” He simply stated.

Richie scoffed. “You’re impossible” he muttered as he stood up. “Well I’ll see you around, Bill” he said, waving at his best friend’s boyfriend. The writer giggled and waved back, while Stan rolled his eyes. As Richie turned around to leave, he grabbed his wrist. “Richie, wait” He exclaimed.

Richie turned to face him, an easy smile on his face. “Yeah, Stan the Man?” He asked. Stan’s expression softened, and he smiled sweetly. “You did a very nice job, Rich. I’m proud of you” He said in a soft tone.

Richie couldn’t help but smile even wider. Stan had never said anything like that. Even if Richie knew he loved him, sometimes it was hard to believe. The man could be hard, always pointing out his faults. Hearing him say it made everything easier.

Richie quickly dried his eyes with the hem of his flannel’s sleeve.

“Thanks Stan” He nodded at him, before walking back to his car.

“See you in New Year’s Eve!” Bill called out as Mike drove away to the airport.

Richie waved at the car until it disappeared, then turned back to his car and got in. He turned to the back, where Ben watched with a smile as Beverly whispered things to Rachel.

“Ready to go?” He asked, and the couple nodded. “Well then,” he said, turning to the road, turning on the engine and grasping the wheel, turning the car towards the road that lead to the train station. “let’s get this show on the road”

 

* * *

 

That night, Richie, summoned in the silence of his apartment, looked through the millions of music albums and CDs he owned, looking for one particular song Melanie gave him a long time ago.

_“I’m scared, Mel” Richie whispered, breaking the comfortable silence that had settled between them._

_“’Bout what?” She asked softly, lightly brushing his bangs of wild hair out of his hair, his head on her lap as they laid on her bed._

_“Of going back. Of… blacking out again. It haunts me to no end, the fear that I might drift off again” He felt tears on his eyes, threatening to fall. Melanie dried his tears, shushing him. She carefully picked his had up, laying it beside her, as she stood up. Not long after, she came back with a CD player, and a CD box. She opened the box. Inside laid a simple CD, with the words ‘Mad World’ written in fancy cursive. She inserted it on the player an pushed the play button. She laid next to him, laying her head on his chest as a slow song started playing._

All around me are familiar faces

Worn out places, worn out faces

Bright and early for the daily races

Going nowhere, going nowhere

Their tears are filling up their glasses

No expression, no expression

Hide my head I wanna drown my sorrow

No tomorrow, no tomorrow

And I find it kind of funny

I find it kind of sad

The dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had

I find it hard to tell you,

I find it hard to take

When people run in circles it's a very, very

Mad world, mad world

_Before he knew it, Richie was openly crying, sniffing and hiccupping. Melanie didn’t say anything, simply caressing his cheek._

Children waiting for the day they feel good

Happy birthday, happy birthday

And to feel the way that every child should

Sit and listen, sit and listen

Went to school and I was very nervous

No one knew me, no one knew me

Hello teacher tell me, what's my lesson?

Look right through me, look right through me

And I find it kind of funny 

find it kind of sad

The dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had

I find it hard to tell you,

I find it hard to take

When people run in circles it's a very, very

Mad world, mad world,

enlarging your world, mad world

_Richie didn’t know if the song had anything to do with him, or what it was about. But it made him feel safe, understood. Like there were more people out there in his situation and they wanted him to understand he was not alone, he could do this. He felt like that was what Melanie was trying to tell him. He hugged Melanie tight, praying to every existing god that Melanie never left his side._

Richie finally found the piece, putting it on the CD player. He laid on his bed as he listened to the song.

At times like this, Richie often wondered if he still loved Melanie. He thought that he probably did, but a part of him felt like he and Melanie would never get back together, and, even if they did, it’d never be the same.

Richie also wondered if Melanie ever listened to this song anymore. And if she did, he wondered if she thought about him, and if she felt sorry for him. He wondered if she missed him, if she wanted to come back.

Richie sighed, not wanting to think about it. He grabbed his laptop, and looked at the pictures taken from the past week. He came across one that had been taken with Bill’s camera, and he stopped to stare at it for a while. It was from Friday, when they had traveled to the beach for the day, and Ben had offered to drive so that Richie, who had a horrible hangover from the past night, when Bev had had the amazing idea of playing drinking games, taking advantage of Rachel quickly falling asleep.

Beverly, who had borrowed Bill’s camera, took advantage of Richie’s state to take a picture. In it, you could see Riche in the back seat, asleep with his face squished against the seatbelt, and Rachel between his arms with her head laying on his chest, hear breathing following his heartbeat.

Richie smiles at the picture, and looks at the rest of them, remembering everything that happened when they were being taken.

As the song came to an end, a single tear fell down Richie’s cheek.

It was a happy tear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who's ready for Eddie?  
> Oh look it rhymes!  
> okay, so I promise we'll be seeing our Little fireball first thing next chapter  
> Also, the song Mad World is from Gary Jules. I bumped into it in YouTube while writting the scene and I had to stop writing to listen because it was beautiful and it made me cry and Iknew I had to put it in here. https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=mad+world+lyrics&view=detail&mid=E19268D36BE10B4E1412E19268D36BE10B4E1412&FORM=VIRE


	6. Eddie's not Ready

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YAY EDDIE  
> Okay I think this is the quickest update I've done apart from maybe chapter 2?  
> Anyway yaaaaaaaay  
> I feel like It's kind of filter, but again I didn't reread it so yeah… also watch out for mistakes. As i said I didn't reread

**3 years later, 2012**

“So, Eds, what do you think?” Richie asked as they sat on the sofa. Eddie Kaspbrak glared at the taller man.

“Don’t call me that” He protested. He fell silent, looking around for a few moments, before locking eyes with the father.

“Well, the house is certainly nice”

Richie barked out a laugh.

* * *

 

**THREE MONTHS EARLIER**

A few days after Rachel’s 3rd birthday, Richie had decided it was time they moved on. He and Mike started looking for a nice house on the outsides of Seattle, somewhere close to Stan and Bill, but not too far away from Ben and Bev either, and soon came across a nice, two story house in a small neighborhood, around twenty minutes away from Stan’s. It had a nice backyard and it was big enough for Mike to come over whenever he wanted.

In the past three years, Richie, despite having to drop out from college, managed to get on with his life. The people from the library got him a job in the kids section every Friday, paying him a considerate amount of money.

Not only that, but people loved listening to him on the radio, and soon his boss got him a talk show every morning, also giving him a raise.

The money he got from his job, plus the ‘donations’ his friends made through him first year taking care of Rachel, added to the fact that he didn’t spend half the money a person in his situation would, given the fact that Mike practically lived with them and Stan also payed part of Rachel’s scholarship, ended up on the Toziers turning into a rather wealthy family. For that reason, Richie could allow himself to buy the house, as well as pay for Rachel’s new kindergarten (though Stan insisted he had that covered), and the company he worked for had another radio station close to his house. He would have to quit his job in the library, sure, but it wouldn’t be a problem, economically speaking.

So, it was settled. Rachel didn’t seem to have a problem with moving, but she did get upset when she heard Mike would stay in LA.

Rachel, at her young age, already resembled her father so much. Her dark locks, though shorter than her father’s, were still as wild. She had his chocolate eyes and joyful smile. It didn’t take long for her to learn how to talk, and, when she did, she didn’t stop (not that Richie complained. He loved having someone else to talk to). Truly, the only thing that reminded Richie of Melanie was the fact that his daughter would practically always keep her calm in anxious situations and didn’t get mad half as much as other kids did.

In around a month, they had bought the house, sold the apartment, and were ready to move.

It wouldn’t take long for them to pack, considering their house was quite small, so Richie, being Richie, decided to leave packing as a last moment thing.

The day they were moving, Richie threw himself on the bed’s mattress, next to Rachel’s cot, shaking her softly. “C’mon, Little nugget, time to wake up” He whispered softly. Rachel groaned, moving a bit before looking up at her father, two pairs of dark brown eyes meeting each other.

Rachel smiled softly, attaching herself to her father’s arm. “Are we leaving today?” She asked.

“Yeah, we are” Richie said, and he sat up, taking Rachel in his arms and tickling her. “And you need to help daddy pack!” He exclaimed.

Rachel exploded in a fit of laughter. “Stop! Daddy stop!” She screamed. Richie smiled and let her down next to him.

Richie had woken up a bit earlier than usual in order to clean up the living room and the kitchen, so that he and Rachel could clean the bathroom and his room, which would be quick. Richie would have done it himself, but Rachel insisted on helping; she loved stacking CDs and books. When Richie had asked her how she would order them alphabetically, she had said “You’re smart, you’ll figure something out”, patting his head, before walking back to the room, leaving Richie looking at her with an amused smile.

But Richie did, in fact find a way. He wrote down the alphabet and showed Rachel, who looked questionably at him. “This is the alphabet” He explained, and she nodded. “This” he pointed towards the A “is the first letter. When you see the title of a CD that starts with this letter, you’ll know it goes first. If there are two CDs that start with the same letter, you look at the second letter. If the second letter of one of them is this one” he pointed towards the F “and the other one is this one” he pointed at the N “Then you’ll know the one with this second letter” he pointed to the F again “goes first, because the letter goes first on the alphabet, and so on, yeah?” Rachel looked at the paper silently for a moment, but eventually nodded. The two of them spent the next hour doing exercises so Rachel would get it, and Richie was pleased with how quickly Rachel understood it.

Richie kneeled in front of Rachel, and put on a deep showman voice.

“Now, dear youngling, are you ready to complete this dangerous task?” He asked, showing her the alphabet sheet. Rachel put on a serious expression and nodded.

* * *

 

They spent the next two hours cleaning up the room. While Rachel ordered the CDs, books and magazines, putting them inside boxes, Richie took care of his instruments and fragile objects, his old college stuff, the clothes, the bathroom and Rachel’s cot.

“Daddy?” Rachel called out as she closed the last box.

“Yeah nugget?” Richie asked without turning around, too busy disassembling the cot.

“I think I wanna sleep in a bed” She replied in a small voice. Richie’s head shot up, and he turned to his daughter.

“What?” He asked, a bit stunned.

“I don’t wanna sleep in the cot” She repeated. Richie swallowed and smiled at her.

“We’ll see what we can do when we get to our new home, yeah?” He asked, and she nodded, smiling at him.

As he turned around to continue working on the cot, he felt two tiny arms wrap around his middle.

“Love you” He heard Rachel’s voice muffled against his back. He smiled.

“Love you too, nugget” He turned around to hug her. “Help me with the cot?” He asked, and the kid nodded.

* * *

 

Shortly after the pair finished packing, the moving truck arrived, and the driver helped them put the boxes inside. When the truck left, Richie locked the house and got into the car with Rachel. They drove to Mike’s house, where Richie handed him the apartment’s keys. After they said their goodbye’s, Richie and Rachel got in the car.

“Ready, nugget?” Richie asked. Rachel hummed in response. “Let’s go”

* * *

 

About halfway through the trip, not long after they had stopped to have lunch, Rachel’s voice broke the silence that had taken over the car when Richie had turned the radio off as it lost its signal.

“Dad?” She called out from her sit in the backseat, where she was covered with a thin blanket, despite it being summer. Richie hummed, glancing at her reflection on the mirror for a second before looking back at the road. “Can you put on our playlist?” She asked. Richie smiled.

_“You know something else I hate?” Rachel said as she glanced at the paper that hang on the fridge from where she laid on the couch. Writing ‘THINGS WE LIKE AND THINGS WE DON’T’ had been Mike’s idea, and it consisted on two lists, one of things they liked and another of things they didn’t, that they wrote down whenever the thought came. Later, they’d think of ways to avoid things they didn’t like, and try and do the things they did as much as possible._

_Richie smiled down at her daughter, taking the paper and a pen. “Let’s hear it” he said._

_Rachel smiled up at her father, and sat up. “I hate that the people that put music on the radio have no music taste” She shook her head. “I also hate that they talk a lot and are very boring. But then it stops sounding and that’s also not cool” She paused for a moment, then looked at her father, and her eyes widened. “Not you, you’re super cool” Rachel had grown up listening to the music her father, who, believe it or not, had a good taste in music, put, and she listened to his talk show whenever she could._

_Richie snorted “Is that so?” He asked as he wrote it down. Rachel nodded._

_Richie looked at the paper for a moment, then had an idea. “What if we make a list of our favorite songs and put it on a CD, so we can listen to it on the car?”_

_Rachel’s expression brightened, and she nodded enthusiastically._

“Sure, can you reach it?” He asked, and he extended his arm towards her. Rachel reached out for it and grabbed it, giving it to her father.

Richie glanced at it for a moment, reading the title ‘ _Richie & Rachel’s awesome mix_’, before inserting it in the CD player.

Rachel closed her eyes again as Hey Ho by The Lumineers started playing, and by the time Hall of Fame by The Script started playing she had already snoozed off.

Richie smiled to himself, knowing she’d wake up in time for song number 19. From that number on, the rest of the songs were Queen songs, and Rachel absolutely adored Queen, singing along to the lyrics as well as her father, so the car rides turned into a real party.

* * *

 

Moving in was easy, as they really didn’t have many stuff, so they were quickly settled. The first month went by easily. Richie got used to the new radio station quite quickly, and Rachel didn’t have to go to kindergarten, as it was summer. They threw a little party to invite Bev, Ben, Stan, Bill and Mike over. Rachel immediately loved the house, and they were quick to adapt to their new life.

The problem was Rachel spent most of the time over at Stan and Bill’s, since Richie worked four hours a day Monday to Friday, and when Richie was offered a morning show in the radio, he understood he would have to get a nanny for Rachel, since neither Stan nor Bill would be able to take herto school due to college.

And that’s where Eddie Kaspbrak comes into the picture. Richie talked to Stan and Bill about the issue, and Bill mentioned a friend from college that didn’t live far away from Richie’s place.

“Eddie is studying medicine” Bill explained. “He hates living in his dorm, but he really doesn’t think he can afford an apartment, so he really doesn’t have a choice. He is very clean and he loves spending time with kids. I think it’d be a great opportunity for him, and it’d be good for both you and Rachel”

Stan then proceeded to explain how good the kid was and that he had his full trust. So Bill gave Richie his number for him to call Eddie.

Eddie came two weeks after, and Richie proceeded to show him around.

And it came down to this.

* * *

 

“Is that really all you have to say?” Richie asked, and Eddie shrugged.

“I haven’t met the kid yet, there’s not really anything else to say” He explained.

Richie nodded. “Okay, well, Spaghetti, tell me a bit about yourself” Eddie put a disgusted face.

“Spaghetti? Man, what is it with you and the horrible nicknames?” He scrunched up in disgust, which Richie found cute.

Eddie Kaspbrak was a petite man, way shorter than Richie, despite five months older than the taller man. He had short, chocolate hair, a bit curly, and big doe eyes of the same color, full of life. Freckles where sparkled all over his tan skin, giving him a childish look when added to his eyes and stature. Despite seeming cute and innocent, Eddie was truly feisty, kind of like a small angry ball of fire.

Eddie, as Richie learned during their long conversation, was kind of a hypochondriac. He had an overprotective mother back in Derry, Maine that suffered Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy. According to Eddie, she had locked him up in his house the better part of his life, telling him he was sick and giving him fake pills, even saying he had asthma. She tricked him into thinking she was the only person he could trust, and that she was the only one who loved him. Eddie thinks his mother started acting this way when his father died, back when Eddie was five, because of cancer.

Due to having to take all these medical precautions, Eddie learned a lot about medicine and first aids, which is why he decided he wanted to study medicine. So, when he turned 18 he run as far away from his mother as physically possible without having to leave the country, and that’s how he ended up in Seattle.

Apart from studying, Eddie also worked in a café close to the university every weekend to win some money.

Eddie explained that he loved hanging out with kids and taking care of them, mostly because he wanted to give them the opportunity of having the childhood he never had.

After almost an hour of talking, Richie excused himself for a moment, and came back with a few papers and a pen.

“Okay so I’m not sure how this works ‘cause I’ve never hired anyone but I’m pretty sure you have to sign here-” Richie was cut off by Eddie while he pointed at the bottom of one of the pages.

“Wait- what?” The shorter man asked, awestruck.

“Oh, right” Richie said. “You’re hired” Eddie gapped a few times.

“What? Now? Why? You just met me! What if you meet someone better? What if Rachel doesn't like me? God, Richie, I don’t think this is a good idea-” Richie cut Eddie’s rambling of by putting his hands on the petite male's shoulders.

“Eddie, listen. Stan trusts you. It really doesn’t get any better than that” He assured him. Eddie chuckled nervously.

“But what if I turn out being a mess…?” He asked bashfully.

“Rachel lives with me. She’s used to people being a mess” Richie shrugged it off.

Eddie looked at the page unconvincingly. “Alright” He took the pen and signed where Richie told him.

“Alright then. You already know where your room is. I’ll pay you at the end of every month, I guess” Richie stood up and put the papers away.

* * *

 

A few minutes after, while Richie was showing Eddie some pictures of Rachel, someone rang the doorbell.

“It’s Bill!” Came Bill’s voice from behind the door.

“And Rachel!” Added Rachel’s. Richie spared Eddie a glance before walking towards the door and opening it.

Rachel immediately jumped into her father’s arms. “Hey there apricot” Richie laughed, hugging her back. Bill waved at Eddie as he walked up to greet them.

“Hi Bill” Eddie saluted his friend.

Rachel’s head shot up at the unfamiliar voice. “Who are you?” She asked, looking deeply into the stranger’s eyes.

Eddie keeled in front of the kid, who let go on her father. “Why, I’m Eddie, and it’s seems I got lost in this gigantic castle” He said, looking at his surroundings. “Do you by any means know where the secret treasure is hidden?” He asked.

Rachel giggled. “It is pretty big. But I think I know where it is” She moved towards him and whispered something in his ear.

Eddie’s eyes widened in surprise. “Wait, really?” Rachel nodded, humming.

Richie smiled at the pair, then looked at Bill. “Good choice” He whispered. Bill smiled and nodded.

Rachel turned to her father with a serious expression. “We can keep him” She stated.

“Can we?” Richie raised his eyebrow, and Rachel nodded. Eddie smiled at the toddler and stood up.

“I better go pack” He said. “I’m gonna call my roommate now, if that’s alright?” Richie nodded.

“Spare key’s in the studio, if you want to take it now” He said, and Eddie nodded. He dialed a number and walked towards the stairs.

“Hey, Myra, listen…” Eddie’s voice faded away as he walked up the stairs.

“Thoughts?” Bill asked. Richie turned to him, grinning wide.

“He’s a keeper” Bill snorted.

“Oh I’m sure he is” He replied, shaking his head. “I’ll be heading home now, Stan and I are going to the cinema to watch The Perks of Being a Wallflower”

“Oooh I read the book. The end is very sad. I bet you a dollar Stan cries” Richie exclaimed.

“Stan? Crying? For a movie?”

“You betcha!” Bill sighed.

“See you later, Rich. Bye Rachel!” He called as he opened the door.

“Bye uncle Bill!” She shouted back as he closed the door behind him.

“Richie!” Eddie called immediately after.

“Coming!” Richie shouted back. He winked at Rachel and run up the stairs. “S’ up, spaghetti?” He asked as he entered the studio, where he was welcomed with the image of Eddie standing on his tip toes, trying to reach the spare key. Richie laughed at the sight, walking over.

“Aww, little Eds can’t reach the top, can he?” He mocked as he put a hand on his shoulder, reaching over him to grab the keys.

Eddie looked at the taller man and pouted, which was just _adorable_ , and exclaimed “Well excuse me if not everybody is a tall, lanky, baby giraffe like you, Richard”

Richie suppressed a laugh. “Oh, so we’re playing the full name card, huh, Edward?”

Eddie huffed, muttering a ‘whatever’ as he escaped Richie’s grip, but Richie didn’t miss the little smile that crept through his face.

“I’m leaving now” Eddie announced as he turned to look at Richie, who nodded.

“Sure, just, don’t come later than 9, Rachel will probably be asleep” Richie paused for a moment. “Oh, who am I kidding, she probably won’t be. Come whenever you want”

Eddie rolled his eyes fondly at Richie. “See you later Richard”

“Goodbye Edward”

* * *

 

Richie ended up buying Rachel the bed.

* * *

 

Stan did cry.

****

* * *

 

**_RICHIE & RACHEL’S AWESOME MIX_ **

  1. Ho Hey - The Lumineers
  2. It’s Time – Imagine Dragons
  3. Hall of Fame - The Script
  4. Price Tag - Jessie J
  5. Someone Like You - Adele
  6. Firework - Katy Perry
  7. Girls Just Wanna Have Fun - Cyndi Lauper
  8. Material Girl - Madonna
  9. Grenade - Bruno Mars
  10. Darkside - Alan Walker
  11. The A Team - Ed Sheeran
  12. Mad world - Gary Jules
  13. Sweet Caroline - Neil Diamond
  14. Lollipop - Mika
  15. Should I Stay or Should I Go - The Clash
  16. Demons - Imagine Dragons
  17. All Star - Smash Mouth
  18. Hello my Old Heart - The oh Hellos
  19. We Will Rock You - Queen
  20. Don’t Stop Me Now - Queen
  21. Another One Bites the Dust - Queen
  22. Friends Will Be Friends - Queen
  23. God Save The Queen - Queen
  24. I Want It All - Queen
  25. I Want to Break Free - Queen
  26. A Kind of Magic - Queen
  27. Radio Ga-Ga - Queen
  28. Rock It - Queen
  29. The Show Must Go On - Queen
  30. We Are The Champions - Queen



**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so yeah the story officially started  
> I think you'll love the next chapter. It has some exciting news  
> Also I made the playlist on Spotify but I dunnohow to add the link so yeah… just look for it I guess  
> (If you didn't notice I'm a sucker for Queen)


	7. Be my shooting star

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When did I decide to put chapter titles? This very instant.  
> Okay so this is a short, fluffy chapter in wich we have a BIG anouncement (and minor Reddie ;) )  
> I hope you guys enjoy it. It can get a bit sad butttt I just love crying.  
> Also, I admit I'm not specially happy with how this chapter turned out, but plotwise it's fine

**Two years later, 2014**

 

“Okay, Bill, honey” Stan was saying, swatting the various insects that surrounded them away. “I trust you and all, but are you _sure_ this is the right way?”

Bill turned to him for the hundredth time that night, an easy smile still playing on his lips. “Stan, even Rachel isn’t scared. We’ll be fine” He assured his boyfriend who huffed in annoyance.

Richie threw an arm around Stan. “Yeah, Stanley, loosen up a little. Trust the leader!” He exclaimed.

Even if he seemed a bit shy at first, everybody agreed that Bill was a natural leader. He had a way of transmitting confidence and security to everyone else in the group (except Stan, but Bill didn’t take that personally).

That is why, when Bill proposed going stargazing one of the nights Mike stayed in Seattle, no one thought twice before counting themselves in.

Behind the three men walked Ben with Rachel on his shoulders, spinning her around, causing the 5-year-old to burst out in giggles.

Behind them, Beverly and Mike chatted about any and everything, and Eddie simply watched the image before him fondly.

Eddie quickly bonded with the group, since Stan and Bill already knew him, Rachel adored him, Richie had grown very fond of him and Bev, Ben and Mike loved his attitude and how well he did his job, always playing with Rachel and teasing her, but also taking care of her. Eddie would be lying if he said he wasn’t grateful for coming across such a unique group. He never once felt out of place, and he felt like these were the first real friends he ever had. Sure, he had met a lot of people in college, but at the end of the day they preferred going to parties and getting drunk than spending the evening studying with the hypochondriac. And his roommate, Myra, she was nice and all that, but Eddie couldn’t help but feel like she was his mother all over, telling what he should and shouldn’t do. When he told her he was moving in with Richie, she threw a fit, whining and crying and saying things along the lines of ‘you can’t leave me, Eddie’, kind of like his mother when he left for college.

Rachel, still on Ben’s shoulders, turned around as she noticed Eddie was slowly separating himself from the group. “C’mon, Eddie Spaghetti!” She called “You don’t wanna get lost!”

Eddie sighed. “Richard, I curse the day you showed your daughter that nickname!” He shouted, but never stopped smiling.

Richie laughed, throwing his head back, and Rachel giggled. “Careful with how you call Mr. Edward, Strawberry, he might get mad” He warned his daughter.

“Richie, for the love of God, how many times do I have to remind you your daughter is not food!” Stan told him.

Eddie chuckled and jogged ahead, catching up with the group. 

They kept walking for a while, Stan and Richie bickering, Ben and Eddie playing ‘I spy with my little eye’ with Rachel, Beverly and Mike talking about Bev’s studies, and Bill leading the way, sparing the occasional comment so no one would trip with or hit something.

After some time, the path got a bit complicated to go through. At some point, Ben had to lower Rachel on his back, so she wouldn’t hit the lowest branches of the trees. Bill and Beverly had to take out their phones to light the way, as the sun had already set and there was barely any light anymore.

“You know, this reminds me of the school trip back in sixth grade” Richie commented, eyeing Beverly and Stan. “We spent the night in a hostel in the middle of the camp, and our teachers prepared a game we had to play in the forest, and we couldn’t take flashlights” He explained.

“There was no light, so we couldn’t see two sh-” Stan coughed roughly, reminding Richie there was a kid among them. “-rimps. Two shrimps. The point is, the tree branches were low as hell, so mostly everyone came out wounded” Everyone looked at Richie like he was a lunatic. Richie shrugged. “What? It wasn’t like the wounds were _that_ deep, no one died”

“You say that like they should have” Mike muttered.

“The fun part was when Stan came-” Stan cut Richie off midsentence.

“Okay, story time’s over” Stan said. “We’re here, anyway, right Bill?”

“When Stan what?” Bill asked, ignoring his boyfriend.

“ _Right, Bill?_ ” Stan repeated through gritted teeth. Bill nodded, and Stan smiled triumphantly.

 

* * *

 

Everyone was lying on everyone. Mike was lying on the blanket. Rachel was laying on his chest. On his lap laid Bill’s head, who’s body Stan was using as a pillow. Mike’s head was hidden Ben’s neck crook, as Ben had an arm around Beverly’s waist, who rested her head against his chest. Richie was half sitting, resting his back on Bev’s legs, as he played with Eddie’s hair, who had his head on Richie’s stomach, and had his legs tangled with Mike’s and his arm reaching out towards Rachel, absentmindedly playing with her fingers.

Everyone was looking up at the sky, admiring the stars. Every now and then, Mike would spot a constellation and would point at it, whispering its name for Rachel to hear.

“Don’t you guys just… feel infinite?” Stan whispered after a few minutes. Everybody was silent for a moment, then:

“Did my boyfriend just quote The Perks of Being a Wallflower?” Bill asked.

“You bet he did” Beverly answered.

“Hold your horses, peeps, Stanley’s getting philosophical” Richie commented.

Mike swatted Richie’s arm. “Don’t ruin the moment”

They all stayed silent for some seconds, before Eddie whispered “I do”

“Yeah, me too…” Agreed Ben, and the others hummed in agreement.

“What does being infinite mean?” Rachel asked to no one in particular, and Mike smiled at her.

“Moments like these. That’s what it means” Beverly explained, and it was enough for the kid to understand. 

After a few minutes of silence, Bill reached out for his phone and searched for something. A few seconds later, _Landside_ started playing. And the group felt infinite. And Rachel listened to the song and decided that, she, too, felt infinite.

A shooting star crossed the sky before their eyes, momentarily lighting the scene, making everyone smile. “Make a wish” Mike whispered.

When the light faded, Richie turned to face his friends and daughter. “What did you guys wish?” He asked. And it was a secret, but they never kept secrets.

“I wished everyone would stop from time to time, just to think of how grateful they should be for having what they have.” Eddie confessed. Richie smiled, hugging him, before he continued playing with his hair.

“I wished I could listen to this song forever” Bill said, looking down at his boyfriend, who smiled up at him.

“I wished people actually tried to get to know us before misjudging us” Beverly whispered, and everyone looked sympathetically at her, Ben gripping her hand soft but determinedly.

“I wished I could go back in time to visit all the people I ever lost that I cared for, and have the chance to tell them I loved them one last time” Mike hugged Rachel close as he told everyone.

“I wished I could find the way to express more often how thankful I am for having you guys” Stan confessed, and everyone turned to look at him.

“We know” Is all Ben said, and everyone nodded.

Richie debated on doing a joke, but one look at Eddie’s peaceful expression told him this moment was too precious to ruin. “I wished I could forgive my parents for what they did. I wished to call them and show them how far I’ve come for them to be proud. I wish they were” Eddie looked at him with a special glint in his eyes. It wasn’t pity, as Richie first thought. It was more like admiration. He felt Bev squeeze his hand and he squeezed back.

“I wished we could stay like this forever, and not worry about anything else” Ben said, rubbing Bev’s back.

“What about you, Rachel?” Mike asked. They all expected her to say something childish, about a toy or something, and they were surprised when they heard her say “I wish I could meet my mommy”

No one dared move. “Rachel…” Richie started.

“I know.” Rachel cut him off “I know I can’t. I just wish I could” She turned to her father “So that I could tell her how dumb she was for letting you go”

Richie smiled at her and took her in his arms. “Love you, Strawberry”

“Love you too”

As the song came to an end, Beverly softly whispered.

“Guys… I’m pregnant”

 

* * *

An hour and many congratulations after, the group decided to call it a night. As they walked back, the group asked Beverly various questions, but eventually the chatter died down, as sleep consumed everyone. 

“Where do babies come from?” Rachel asked, yawning, and Bill started giggling crazily.

Richie cleared his throat “Um, Bev, I’m pretty sure she asked you”

“Nonsense!” The auburn-haired woman exclaimed “You’re the father, it’s only logical you explain”

Richie scoffed, and turned to Eddie. “Eds, you study medicine, I’m sure you know how to explain it”

“Richie, I’m studying to be a nurse. I’m not gonna attend birth!” Eddie protested.

“You sure know more about the subject than I do!” Richie countered, and Eddie sighed.

“Fine. Okay, well, you see…”

* * *

 

“Do you want me to drive, Rich? You seem a bit tired” Eddie asked, eyeing the father as they approached the car. Richie shook his head, smiling lazily at Eddie.

“Appreciate the help, S’ghetti, but I’ll be fine. You go ahead and take a nap” He told the petite man, who sighed, muttering ‘not my name’, but gave in. He put Rachel on her car chair, and sat on the shotgun seat, buckling his seatbelt. As Richie started to drive, Eddie fumbled with the radio until he found a station that he liked, and, within seconds, he was already asleep, curled up in his seat.

Richie casted a glance towards him, smiling fondly to himself. He noticed Rachel moving in the backseat.

“You awake, Strawberry?” He whispered, so as to not wake Eddie up. Rachel rubbed her eyes, nodding slowly. The car felt silent once again, except for the music that came from the radio, occasionally going static.

“Is it true?” Richie asked after a few minutes. “Do you really wanna meet mom?”

Rachel looked up at her father. She shrugged, looking down. “I guess… I wanna know how she is. Doesn’t mean I forgive her…” Richie smiled at that. Rachel looked back up at her father.

“Did you really do… _that_ , with mom, to have me?” She asked in a kind of disgusted tone. Richie turned red, coughing a bit. “I mean” The five-year-old looked out the window. “It’s fine and all… it’s just _disgusting_ ”

Richie muttered a small ‘I guess’, trying not to lose his focus on the road. “Go back to sleep, yeah? You need it” He told his daughter, who nodded.

“Dad?” She whispered after a minute, eyes closed. Richie hummed. “That song uncle Bill played… I want it in our playlist”

 

* * *

 

“That was quite an explanation you gave back there, Spaghetti” Richie commented as he unlocked the door, Eddie trailing behind him, carrying a snoozing Rachel.

“Still not my name” The shorter man stated as he closed the door, and Richie all but shrugged. They walked up the stairs and, while Eddie walked into Rachel’s room, Richie entered his room.

He took his clothes off and put some pajamas on, getting inside the bed and taking his phone, scrolling through it lazily.

A few minutes later, just as he was about to doze off, a single knock on the door startled him awake.

“Can I come in?” Came Eddie’s voice from the other side of the door.

“Yeah” Richie answered as he let his phone down.

Eddie came in, muttering a little ‘hey’ as he closed the door behind him. He sat on the bed, looking around for a bit, before locking eyes with Richie.

“We uh, we need to talk about this whole ‘you paying me’ thing” He stated, and Richie furrowed his brow. Eddie had never complained about it before. In fact, Richie was sure he forgot to pay him at the end of the month once or twice and Eddie hadn’t even mention it.

“Oh god did I not give you enough?” Richie was already reaching for his wallet, but Eddie gently put a hand on his arm.

“No, you, uh, you gave me quite a considerate amount” He said. “Anyway, that’s not the point” Eddie paused for a moment. “Look, Richie, I think you should stop paying me”

Richie let out a strangled “what?”

“Like, I’ll still live here and take care of Rachel and all, just-”

“Wait. Wait, wait, wait” Richie stood up abruptly, and put his hands on Eddie’s shoulders, kneeling down so he stood on the same eye level as the shorter man, who frowned a bit. “You’re not leaving me, are you, Eds?” Richie asked, his tone sarcastic, if not a bit disappointed, and Eddie kind of felt like this was a breakup.

“Richie, relax” Eddie grabbed the trashmouth’s hands softly, gently taking them off his shoulders and putting them on both his sides, not letting go. “I can’t leave you guys” He said, smiling softly.

Richie’s features relaxed. After a minute, he nodded for Eddie to continue.

“I, uh… I was thinking, earlier tonight” Eddie explained. “You guys are my only true friends. My only true family, really” He laughed dryly. “I mean, sure, there’s Myra and my mom, but it’s not the same. I feel anxious around them, and I barely see them at all now” He shrugged. “With you guys it’s the other way around. I consider you family, Richie. I can’t have you pay me for helping you”

“But-” Richie tried, but was cut off when Eddie let go of one of his hands, putting his hand on Richie’s mouth. Richie crossed his eyes to stare at the hand, flushing a light pink.

Eddie retrieved his hand. “Sorry” He sighed. Lately, he felt like Richie and him were closer… physically. And he didn’t know to think about it. “Listen. My boss offered to give me a rise if I take an hour longer shift. Plus, I don’t need to pay for my apartment alone. I don’t need the money. Please, think of it as a way of saying thank you” He shrugged suggestively. Richie opened his mouth, only to immediately close it, for one in a loss of words. 

Richie slowly stood up, sitting next to Eddie, and the shorter man felt the mattress shift under Richie’s weigh. They stayed like that for a while, Richie thinking for a while, before he nodded.

“Okay” Eddie immediately tackled him into a hug, both of them landing on the comforter. Richie would move from this position, claiming it was uncomfortable, if it weren’t for the soft “Thank you” that escaped Eddie’s lips, almost by accident, sending shivers down his spine. Instead, Richie covered their bodies with the bed sheets, falling asleep with their bodies flush together.

And it wasn’t like it meant anything. Friends did this all the time, and they were friends, right?

And if Richie slipped a couple of dollars into Eddie’s wallet every end of month, it was no one’s business but his.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I would totally go through Bev's pregnancy butttt I kinda want to move on to 2018 so yeppp. Sorry not sorry.  
> BUT I'm open for name suggestions!  
> Also does Rachel wanting to see her mom mean anything? (Spoilers: Maybe)  
> Ready for 2018?  
> And yes I'm a sucker for The Perks of Being a Wallflower


	8. It's tradition

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you like this chapter, I just really wanted to write it, and I think it's beautiful

**4 years later, 2018**

Rachel loved her family. She considered Mike, Bev, Bill, Ben and Stan uncles and aunt, and Eddie… Eddie was more than that. He was a best friend, a father, a nurse, a teacher… She loved Eddie dearly, almost as much as Richie.

Rachel shared at least one tradition with each of the members in her family, and she loved each and every one of them. She shared a bond with everyone through these traditions, a bond she wouldn’t dare break.

As the nine-year-old lay that night, thinking of her family, her eyes travelled around her room until they eventually reached her desk.

Rachel’s bedroom was all she could ask for it to be. Nothing fancy, but it suited her perfectly. The walls were green and yellow and purple, and many other colors. She remembered painting it with Mike, Richie and Eddie, how they had decided to just paint it like a 2-year-old’s drawing, full of paint blobs, as Rachel really couldn’t decide what color she wanted. The walls were blue, but there were circles and stars and other shapes stamped on them, which made the room more vivid.

Rachel’s room was never messy: Richie claimed she got that from her mother, while Stan and Eddie both insisted that she had simply been taught well (by them, obviously). Rachel chose to think it was because she had plenty of room to put her things away, and because she really didn’t use her room that much. She would normally do stuff in the living room, garden, or even the studio, mostly only entering her room to pick whatever she needed.

Her bed was a simple white twin bed, with fluffy covers, as well as a big pillow and another, smaller one.

She had two nightstands, one on each side. The one in the left had a lamp, and a shelf for her to keep her books in. In the right one, instead of a lamp stood Rachel Jr. in all her horrendous looking glory (Rachel had thought about buying new clothes for her, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it). Below it, instead of a shelf, there were two drawers with small things she didn’t want running around, like her guitar pick.

Ah, her precious guitar. She (yes, she) stood next to the window, by the bookshelf here Rachel kept books, CDs, albums, cards and birthday and Christmas presents.

She had a built-in wardrobe, right by the door. It was white, like the bed, and had many pictures and drawings hanging on the sliding doors.

And then there was her desk. The white table was attached to the wall, and could easily be pulled up or pushed down, as to create more space in the room. She’d do any and everything in her desk, such as drawing and writing stories or music, as long as it included a pen, a paper and a little bit of creativity.

Whenever Rachel was bored (which, surprisingly, wasn’t that usual), she’d spend her time cleaning her desk, stalking papers, ordering pens and pencils by color…

Rachel stood from her bed and walked towards the desk. Right now, it was pulled down, and the things that were normally placed on it, rested on the bookshelf next to the guitar. Right over the table, on a single long white shelf, stood eight framed pictures that were all similar to each other. They had been taken in Thanksgiving, every year since Rachel was born, and his year’s picture was yet to be taken. But it was summer now, so it would have to wait.

In each picture stood Rachel and Beverly, hugging each other and smiling at the camera, standing next to a snowman they had built together. The floor, as well as their winter clothes, was covered in a thick layer of snow, and in some of the pictures it was also snowing. It was lovely

It was tradition.

Rachel took last year’s picture and smiled at it, remembering the good time they’d had.

However, this wasn’t the only tradition Rachel shared with her only aunt in the family. Bev and Ben would always drive by for the holidays and festivals, such as Halloween, Carnivals, Christmas, and Pride, ALWAYS Pride.

Rachel looked towards the wall her bed was set against, looking at the pride flag that stood over it.

Rachel didn’t think she was an LGTB person, but she was too young to know. However, Pride was a quite present factor in her family, and she was forever proud about it (didn’t suck any less when the kids at school laughed at her, though).

Anyway, Beverly had always been up for (if not insistent on) designing and making Rachel’s costumes because of course they attended the various festivals, and Rachel of course didn’t say no.

Beverly had finished fashion school and now lead a successful fashion line, so naturally her designs were beautiful, and Rachel loved every single one of them. They were breathtaking, but simple all the same, so Rachel never got anxious inside them and her asthma kicked in.

Yes, Rachel was asthmatic. But she didn’t put much thought into it, as her life was relatively calm, and she didn’t have attacks often.

Rachel turned to her bookshelf, smiling as she saw the last Lego she built. She thought back to her birthday, when Ben had given her a Lego. They spent half the afternoon building it, and another half building nonsenses with the Lego pieces Rachel kept in a box.

Ben, after finishing his architecture degree, quickly got a job. He was unsurprisingly amazing at it, and quickly won fame in the company he worked for.

Even though Ben generally stuck to designing, he didn’t mind getting his hands dirty every now and then. That is why, two years ago, he and the Toziers talked about reforming Rachel’s bedroom. Rachel got so excited she convinced Ben and Bev, as well as the kids, to stay for two weeks so they could prepare everything. So, Ben carefully dismantled Rachel’s old furniture. He and Rachel spent a whole day designing her room, measuring here and there. The next three days, they basically lived in Ikea having both lunch and breakfast there as they looked for the perfect furniture.

Once they found what they wanted, they called Bill and Stan to help them load everything.

Ben and Richie spent the last few days building everything, with Bill, Stan and Bev occasionally helping them. When everything was ready, Rachel, with the help of Beverly and her father, put all her stuff back in the room. She spent most of the week playing with Malia and Zaina, who were two-year-old fraternal twin sisters, and Bev and Ben’s daughters. Malia, much like her father, was calm and collected, even at her young age, while Zaina, who clearly had her mother’s blood running through her veins, was a troublemaker.

After that, Ben found out he loved building stuff with and for Rachel. So, since last summer, he’d come over every other day, and help Rachel build a treehouse.

Rachel sighed contently, looking out the window to the setting sun, staring at the almost finished treehouse. She still remembered how her father helped her write the sign that now stood next to the ladder, where it read _TOZIER’S TREE HOUSE TM_. She giggled at the thought. Downstairs, chatter could be heard, as well as the TV, and someone opening and closing a cupboard, then the fridge. Rachel supposed Richie and Eddie were having something to drink.

Rachel looked back at the bookshelf, and run her fingers through the spine of the books marked with a label that read ‘Mike’ in bold letters. Said books occupied half a shelf, the other half unused, waiting to get filled.

Every time Mike flew from LA to visit them, he brought a book for Rachel to read. He’d stay at night with her, reading. Sometimes he’d read out loud to her, sometimes she to him. Sometimes they’d read in silence, pressed against each other in the small twin bed. It would be like that every night until Mike wet back to LA.

Sometimes, generally once a year, Mike would take Rachel to a local farm in the outskirts of Seattle, about half an hour away from where they lived. Having grown up in a farm, Mike knew practically all there was to know about farm animals, and he’d tell Rachel fun facts and stories about them. Rachel would bring a notebook with her to write them down, hoping someday she’d tell these facts to someone too.

Rachel’s fingers travelled up and down the notebook spiral. As she reached the top, her index finger found its way into the spiral and took a hold of it, pulling the notebook out.

She opened it on a random page, reading the first fact.

  * We say cock-a-doodle-do to imitate a rooster. But it really doesn’t sound much like that, does it? The rooster in my old farm was irritating, and I wanted to throw my alarm clock at him. But grandpa said I couldn’t, cause then our hens wouldn’t lay eggs. What a horrible taste those hens had.



Rachel remembered giggling at that comment. She remembered how, later that day, she had looked up how people imitated roosters in different countries, and she and her father spent the afternoon imitating roosters in different languages.

She put the notebook back and kneeled to reach the lowest shelf. It was fully occupied with various folders, of different types and sizes. One of them, a big, green binder with a label that read ‘Bill’, just like the ones with Mike, stood out from the others, for her size or lack of dust from being recently used, Rachel didn’t know.

The nine-year-old took the binder and turned towards her bed, sinking into the mattress. The binder was separated into two sections. The first one read ‘Drawings’; the second one, ‘Stories’.

Rachel had always thought Bill was the artistic one. He told her stories of his childhood, the things he did with Stan, or the pranks Georgie would pull on him.

Oh Georgie, Rachel thought, smiling to herself. Sweet Georgie. Despite being almost an adult now, Georgie had the soul of a little kid, much like Rachel’s father. Whenever he came to visit, he and Rachel would play for hours and hours, till their souls gave out and they needed to rest. He was like a big brother to Rachel, perhaps a cousin (though in any case he would be her uncle).

Rachel looked at the most recent drawing she had made with Bill. It had been only a few weeks ago. It portrayed a girl sitting on her towel on a beach, her back facing the viewer. There was a sunshade covering part of her body, giving a dark tone to her skin. Her hair was long, moving about in the air. Rachel was no artist, so the drawing wasn’t perfect, but with Bill’s help, they had made the painting unique in a way.

Rachel smiled to herself as she traced the waves of the ocean with her fingers.

She opened the ‘Stories’ section, reading the title of the latest one, ‘ _Lost in memory_ ’.

The stories she and Bill wrote were usually short, but Rachel had decided she wanted to write something longer, and this came to life. The story was still in process, but it was coming to an end.

Rachel enjoyed writing and drawing with Bill. He brought out the best of her creativity, and she could always use some tips from the now professional writer.

Rachel sighed happily as she closed the binder and put it back in its place. Seconds later, step sounded walking up the stairs. Rachel turned to the door, and, not long after, a soft knock made Rachel quickly sit on her bed.

“Can I come in?” Eddie’s voice came through the other side.

“Yeah, sure” The door opened, revealing a tired but smiling Eddie.

“You know your father doesn’t like you here all alone with the door closed” he said as he walked in, closing the door behind him nonetheless. He sat next to Rachel in her bed, putting an arm around her shoulders. “What are you doing with your street clothes still on?” He asked, poking her side and making her giggle. The kid shrugged, looking forward, away from the elder’s gaze. “Just thinking” She mumbled.

“Why doesn’t dad like it when I have the door closed? Doesn’t he trust me?” Rachel’s question was pure curiosity, Eddie could tell by the tone she used, but the second question still made him grimace. He laid down on the bed, pulling Rachel down with him and tickling her sides. “Of course he trusts you!” He exclaimed. He stopped tickling her sides, instead rubbing her arms softly. As the child steadied her breathing, he whispered. “He has his reasons… just, you’re too young to know them for now. He’ll tell you some day, though, I’m sure”

“Won’t I understand them?” She asked.

“No! Of course you would. But, it might… scare you” Eddie explained. “Your father, he, uh… he didn’t have the best of childhoods. A very rough one, actually”

“What happened?” Brown eyes stared at each other, and Eddie smiled, in a way Rachel didn’t understand what he as feeling.

“Now, that’s not my story to tell, is it?” Rachel furrowed her brows. “He’ll tell you, don’t worry”

“Promise?”

“Promise. Now,” Eddie sat back up, Rachel following. “Want me to braid your hair?”

Rachel nodded, crossing her legs in front of her and sitting straighter. As soon as she felt Eddie’s hands on her hair, massaging her scalp, she relaxed into the touched.

As Eddie carefully styled the nine-year-old’s hair, she thought about the traditions she shared with him.

Much like with her father, Rachel spent many hours with Eddie, so at first, she didn’t consider they had any traditions, as they lived their everyday life together. But she started to think deeper, and quickly remembered.

Friday was Rachel’s favorite day of the week. Her father didn’t work Friday mornings, like the rest of the days, so, as nice as it was to hear him greet her good morning through the radio with one of her favorite songs, him waking her up peppering kisses all over her face was even better. School ended earlier, so the Toziers and Eddie had lunch in a restaurant close to Bill and Stan’s. After lunch, they’d visit the pair for an hour, before driving Richie to work, as every Friday he had a special talk show with some of his partners from work. After that, Rachel and Eddie drove back home. Once there, they’d get comfortable and order pizza or Chinese, whatever they felt up for. They’d get in their pjs and talk about their day. When dinner arrived, they’d sink into the couch and have a real movie night, three or four movies, until either they were tired, or Richie arrived and took over the couch. Sometimes, when Richie arrived, he’d put a movie on. In some occasions, Rachel and Eddie would watch with him, but they’d generally get ready for bed.

Another thing they’d do was cook. Rachel adored cooking, and Eddie was an incredible cook. They’d make the most delicious cookies, and baked cakes every time the family came over. Sometimes, when Richie sent them a message saying he’d be home early on a Friday night, or he came from a tough day at work, Rachel ad Eddie would cook something for him, generally pasta (Richie was a sucker for pasta).

Sure, Eddie’s traditions were more domestic and less… _unique_ than the other ones, but Rachel wouldn’t change them, ever.

"There" Eddie patted Rachel's head. "All done"

As he stood up, Rachel thought about her family. And she wondered, not for the first time, about his.

“Don’t you ever miss you family?” She asked, turning to him. He gave her a confused look, sinking back into the mattress.

“You guys are my family” Is all the man said.

“No, yeah, I know… I meant your real family” Rachel insisted. “Your… _organic_ … family?”

Eddie laughed. “You mean my birth family?”

Rachel nodded. “Yeah… Your birth family and stuff…”

 _And stuff?_ Eddie realized Rachel was thinking about her mother, even if unconsciously. “Well… I was an only child, no cousins. All alone” He explained. “My father died when I was very young from an illness, and my mom… well, she wasn’t a very good person” Rachel’s eyes widened. “She wasn’t _bad_ bad! Just, she told me some things… lied to me…” Eddie sighed., standing up. “I’ll tell you tomorrow, yeah?” Rachel nodded. “Your father’s still downstairs if you need anything. Don’t forget to put your pjs on. Goodnight”

“Night” Rachel answered as the door closed behind Eddie, a bit taken aback from his confession.

After a few minutes, she stood up and walked towards the wardrobe, sliding it open. She pulled out her favorite nightgown and took off her summer dress, pulling the nightgown over. She slid the door closed, and came face to face with her and Stan’s favorite football team, the Washington Federals. That was her and Stan’s tradition. Football.

Stan. Calm, steady Stan. Who would’ve known he’d go crazy for football. But Rachel looked at him with pleading eyes when she heard the Washington Federals were playing and her father told her he would buy her a ticket if Stan agreed to go with her (something he found impossible, mind him). Of course, Stan agreed, and they had a blast. Since then, they didn’t miss a match. Bill and he would drive over to the Toziers’, and, while Stan and Rachel watched the match, Bill, Eddie and Richie would have a boys’ night out.

Stan would let lose when he watched football, showing his carefree self, truly enjoying himself, and Rachel felt lucky for being one of the only people who were able to see him like this.

They had another tradition, though. Rachel crouched down and reached under her bookcase and took out a box. Inside it lay an old copy of a book of birds. Rachel smiled to herself as she looked at it.

‘ _My father gave me this book when I was your age. I loved it dearly. Now it’s yours. Will you keep it safe, Rachel?_ ’

She remembered how Stan’s eyes glowed as he asked her this, on her eighth birthday. They went birdwatching every first Sunday and third Sunday of the month since then, just the two of them. Stan would drive to her house early in the morning and they would go to some forest clearing nearby, where they’d be able to watch birds fly around, for around two hours.

Rachel left a note for her father, for as to not wake him up. Both of them knew, though, that Richie would know where she was anyway, but old habits die hard.

Speaking of her father. Rachel put the book away and lay on her bed, thinking about the traditions she had with her father. Well, those were easy.

When Rachel was six, she decided she wanted to play music. So, Richie taught her. And she sang, and played, and sometimes he’d sing and play too.

‘You’re amazing’ Eddie would normally tell them, and they believed it. So, they decided to show the world. They recorded covers, and Richie put them in his Facebook. People loved them. the Toziers’ already had some fame on them, but this just made it increase. So, they kept doing covers. Until they started writing their own songs. They didn’t have many, maybe three or four, but people loved them. So, Mike told them they could maybe do a concert. But they didn’t need the money, did they?

“Give it to a charity” Mike suggested. “It’ll be like a fundraiser”

Richie and Rachel loved the idea and their ‘fans’ did too. So, they gave a concert each year, and the money they raised went to a charity. Rachel loved pulling smiles from the crowd, and hearing them sing along to the lyrics of the songs, and she could tell her father enjoyed it too.

Richie could get stressed, sometimes. When he did, he just grabbed his car and house keys and left. No questions asked. No glances spared. When she was five years old, Rachel got curious. So, she asked.

“Dad” Rachel pulled her father’s sleeve. “Where are you going?”

Richie smiled down at his daughter. “I’m going for a ride” He said.

“Can I go?” The five-year-old asked bashfully. Richie smiled and nodded.

So, they got in the car, and rode away. Rachel didn’t know for how long they drove, or where they went. At some point her father turned the radio on. They didn’t talk, and it was okay.

Her father stopped the car as they entered a path, city long left behind. He looked up at the stars, and, after a minute, closed his eyes, radio still on. Rachel did the same. At some point, Richie turned around and drove back home. They didn’t talk on the way back, and I was still okay.

Since then, whenever Richie grabbed his house and car keys, Rachel followed. No questions asked, no glances spared. It was tradition.

Rachel reached for her photo album. She opened it on the last page, and took out a picture she had taken from her father’s studio a long time ago. In it you could see a beautiful woman with long, brown hair, and a bright smile. Melanie. Her mother.

Rachel fell asleep wondering what her tradition with Melanie would’ve been.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eddie's traditions were hella hard to decide!  
> But anyway  
> Thoughts?


	9. Mommy Knows Best

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, I'm back!  
> I really have no excuse for not writing since last time I posted, except that I felt like I needed some time for myself. Anyway, now that Christmas is here, I'll probably write more  
> Also I have no idea what I just wrote but it's cute so live with it

Richie knew pretty much all there was to know about Eddie’s family and friends. They’d talked about the subject various times, both sharing facts about their not so great childhoods. Richie had even had the _pleasure_ of meeting Eddie’s mother in all her fat, overbearing glory, and watching the large woman struggle through the door and start whimpering about her precious Eddiebear wasn’t exactly how people wanted to spend their evenings at the Tozier-Kaspbrak residence.

Myra wasn’t exactly great either.

Eddie had escaped from Derry with the idea of never falling into his mother’s claws again, but things hadn’t gone as planned. He’d met Myra in college, and the woman instantly had him around her wicked little finger. Eddie had done everything Myra had asked him, even moving in with her. He had become dependent of the woman, and she even convinced him to introduce her to his mother. Sonia and Myra instantly became fearful allies, doing their best to keep Eddie by their side at all times. It wasn’t until a year later Bill took notice of this and alerted Eddie. That’s when Eddie decided it was time he left Myra, and he was lucky enough to be introduced to Richie.

Myra had also made a show of going to look for Eddie, and she had been the same as Sonia, if not worse. ‘ _You’re just confused, Eddie, honey_ ’ They’d repeat to him. ‘ _This terrible man is confusing you_ ’ They’d send disgusted glances towards Richie’s general direction. But Eddie managed to escape their grip all the time.

Rachel had been unlucky to meet the two horrendous women that were once part of Eddie’s life. She’d been present in some of the encounters that took place in their house, and Richie would be lying if he said she didn’t help.

Just last month, Myra had come yet again to get Eddie, and scream some at Richie too. Rachel had been sitting in the kitchen aisle, singing a song as the woman opened the door and yelled for her Eddiebear. Richie remembered poking his head down the stairs and watching as Rachel hopped off the aisle, her jaw set.

“Listen here, you monstrosity” She had said, pointing a finger at Myra. “You have come into my house to bother us too many times to count, and I’m not having more of this. Eddie has had enough of you, you hear me? ENOUGH. So, you’re gonna turn around, walk out that door and never come back or else I’ll call the police and tell them you broke into my house for the third time this month and I assure you you’ll never see your precious Eddiebear again!” Myra, both horrified and offended, put a hand on her chest and exclaimed. “What a lack of manners! I must warn Sonia of your horrendous behavior this instant. Surely, she wouldn’t want her Eddie living in an atmosphere of _this_ kind” With that, she turned around and walked out the door, muttering to herself and insulting the kid, loud enough for her to hear. Richie run down the stairs just as Rachel started screaming again. “I don’t care what that fat woman thinks of me, as long as neither of you come back in this house ever again, you bit-” Richie covered Rachel’s mouth just in time, giving her a warning look, but also a smile. Just as Myra turned to them, abut to say something, Eddie walked up to them.

“Myra? What the hell are you doing here? Again?” Myra just huffed at Eddie, and walked away.

Eddie walked up to the door with a confused expression and an amused smile. “Whatever just happened, thank you” He said, hugging them both.

So, Richie knew well about Eddie’s acquaintances. He knew for a fact that he had no siblings, nor cousins, and that his father had died when he was young, and that people at college or work never really took interest on him. So, when he walked in his house that Wednesday afternoon, and found a woman that wasn’t Myra and _definitely_ wasn’t Sonia, talking to Eddie, he has really confused.

“I see we’ve got company?” Richie said with what he hoped was surprise, and not bitterness, pulling a fake smile off. There was a feeling growing in the pit of his stomach and he refused to accept it was jealousy as he watched the pair smiling and talking.

Eddie stopped talking as he heard him. “Oh, you guys are home! This is Eileen Frettson, from Derry” Eileen waved her hand at the pair. Richie’s alarms turned on at the different surname. _So, not family?_

Rachel, sensing her father’s discomfort, shortly hugged Eddie and sent a quick wave to Eileen before running up to her room. “I’ll, um, I’ll be practicing for the 21st if you need me”

Richie’s smile shortly turned genuine at the mention of the date he and Rachel were flying over to Singapore for their annual concert. “Don’t close the door!” He shouted, and heard a faint ‘ _okay_ ’ in response. He turned to the pair, who stood in the kitchen, and walked over to them, putting his arm around Eddie’s shoulder, rather protectively. Eddie noticed the tightness in Richie’s grip and looked at him questionably, but didn’t move.

“So, Eileen, since when do ya know Eds?” Richie asked with fake joy. Eileen didn’t seem to notice, but Eddie did. The shorter man frowned, but didn’t say anything.

“Oh, we go way back. We were neighbors, back in Derry” She explained. “We weren't exactly _friends,_ but our moms were obsessed with us getting along”

Eddie snorted. “Yeah, that didn't work very well”

Richie couldn’t help but notice that, despite not being close, hey were definitively comfortable with each other, and he felt bad for being slightly mad at this girl that seemed to make Eddie at least a little bit happy.

“Oh, really? And what makes you come here now?” Richie asked, and Eddie rolled his eyes at the taller man.

“Oh, don't worry, I didn't come here to steal your man” Eileen winked at the pair. Both men choked on their spit, their faces reddening, but Eddie noticed Richie's grip on him loosening. Richie let out a laugh.

“Eds is not my man. He's a loner wolf” He said, and Eddie could feel all the malice gone from Richie's voice, his expression at ease.

“God, Richie, you know I hate it when you call me that” Eddie said, swatting him in the stomach. Eileen snorted at the pair.

“But really, why the visit?” Richie asked. Eileen shrugged and looked away.

“Things came up. I still, uh, still live in Derry, and, well...” Eileen looked at Eddie, and Richie followed her gaze.

“My mom, she had a heart attack” Eddie looked down. “Didn't make it”

Richie watched Eddie carefully. “Oh, Eds...” He whispered. He wrapped his long arms around the smaller man, and Eddie immediately melted into the embrace. He lay his head on Richie's shoulder, and closed his eyes.

“I'll give you guys some space” Eileen whispered, voice soft, and seconds later footsteps could be heard walking up the stairs.

After a bit, Edie opened his eyes. “Mike called earlier to talk about the 21st, said he'd call you later. It's weird, he usually stays to talk even if you're not home. Eileen told him about my mom, and the he hung up, saying he had to go” He told Richie, still holding tight onto him.

The taller man chuckled. “Eileen's probably to blame” he suggested, then sighed “I'm so sorry, Eds” Richie said, words muffled against Eddie's hair. “Come on, let's sit own”

* * *

 

Richie handed Eddie a glass of water and sat next to him. “I asked the others if they could come over, thought you'd like the company” Eddie simply hummed in appreciation, looking ahead at the blank TV, and took a sip from his glass.

Eddie had a glum expression. He didn't seem quite sad, but he looked truly exhausted.

They sat like that, in silence, for a few minutes, each in his own thoughts, sitting close but not quite touching.

Eddie finally turned to Richie. “Am I a bad person?” He asked. Richie gave him a questioning look, and he sighed, looking back to the TV. “I mean. My mom, of all people, died from a heart attack, and I didn't even flinch at the news” He looked at his feet, moving them absentmindedly.

Richie looked at him for a couple seconds, surprised, before he cleared his throat. “I mean, it's normal, I guess. That woman did to many bad things to you to count. She's man's worst nightmare” That wasn't probably the best thing to say, but Eddie knew Richie meant well.

“I guess... but still, she's my _mom,_ Rich, and I'm supposed to love her unconditionally, and all that stuff” he mumbled the last part.

Richie sighed. “Not necessarily” He said. Eddie's eyes shot up to him. “Look, Eddie” He shifted in the sofa, turning to face him full-body. “You don't... not love her? You love her, you do, I know you do. But you don't like her, ya know?” Eddie rose a brow in confusion. “Okay, so, she's your mother, figure. She took care of you, fed you... loved you. So you love her. But she's a bad person. She lied to you, manipulated you. So you don't like her, as a person. It's perfectly normal for you to not feel bad for her death. She hurt you, and now she can't bother you anymore. So yeah, you're relieved. It hurts, but it's better this way”

Eddie's frown slowly turned into a soft smile. He nodded, but avoided Richie's stare, his cheeks flushed.

“Funeral's next week, back in Derry” He looked at Richie for a second. “You'll come, right?” Richie nodded.

“Ten bucks Myra shows up and makes a show” He joked. Eddie snorted.

“Yeah, she'll probably use my mom's death as an excuse to persuade me into moving back with her”

“Don't ya worry yer little head S'ghetti” Richie kicked in another one of his accents. “Lil' ol' Rachel will protect ya” Eddie snickered.

They stayed in silence for another minute or so, until Richie chipped up. “So, Eileen, huh?”

Eddie snorted. “God no, no way. She's nice, but we can't be alone in a room together without going wild” Richie opened his mouth to say something. “-DON'T you dare” The raven-haired boy snickered, but let Eddie continue. “When we were little, and our moms would organize play-dates, we would fight so much. My mom screamed at me for 'not being a gentleman', as she put it, but she still wanted me to marry Eileen when we were older”

“And do you want to?” Richie asked. “Marry her, I mean” Eddie laughed.

“No way. One of us would kill the other at the end of the day. We can't live without each other, technically, but we can't live with each other either. Plus, she probably doesn't want to either, a rather toned, handsome man of dark skin caught her attention lately” He winked, and Richie laughed. “Besides, Eileen isn't my type. No girl is, really” He turned to Richie. “You know that”

Richie smiled, teasing. “Really? What is your type then?” He asked.

“Let's just say I like tall people” Eddie answered, a glint in his eyes. Richie's smile grew.

“C'mere” He opened his arms and Eddie melted into him.

“Thanks, Chee” He whispered.

“For what?”

“Everything”

A loud bang interrupted them, followed by a loud 'ah, shoot', and they looked at each other.

“Rachel?” Eddie called out. “You okay?”

“Yeah” came her response almost immediately. “Just walked into a wall” She explained. The two man looked at each other.

“We should check up on her”

“Yep”

* * *

 

Eddie opened the door and sighed in relief. “You came”

“'Course I did, took the first plane here” Mike smiled at him and hugged him “Nice to see you up and running” He commented as he closed the doors.

“Ya know Spaghetti, toughest man on earth” Richie said. Mike chuckled and looked over at the sofa, where everybody was piled up and squished together, and he was surprised to see Eileen there, sharing the love seat with Rachel. His heart skipped a beat.

“Eileen, hi! Didn't know you were still here” He chuckled nervously, sitting between Ben and Stan. Eddie laughed a bit as he brought a chair over.

“Ah, I'm afraid I'm stuck here 'till Eddie goes to dear old Derry” She said, waving her hand dismissively.

“Hear that, homeschool? You're sharing room with the lady!” Richie exclaimed.

Mike's face reddened and her muttered “Beep beep, Richard”

Eileen raised her brow. “Inside joke?” Mike all but nodded.

“Anyway, think we came here to talk about something?” Beverly intervened. Eddie nodded.

“Yeah, um, so the funeral's next Tuesday. I, uh, I guess I'll book us some rooms in the hotel, since I don't really want to be in my mom's house longer than needed” Bill put a comforting hand on Eddie's shoulder, and he smiled gratefully at his friend. “You guys don't need to come if you don't want to, you know. I'll be fine on my own”

Mike shook his head. “Nonsense. We're here or you dude, want it or not. And besides, the farm house is big enough to host all of us, no need to book a hotel” Bill nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, Ed, you know my parents and Georgie wouldn't mind having some of us over”

“Uncle Georgie will be there?!” Rachel's head shot up at the mention of Bill's little brother. Bill nodded. Rachel turned to Eddie, showing a serious expression. “We're going with you, period”

Eddie chuckled, putting his hands up in defense.

* * *

 

Eddie said goodbye to Richie and walked up to his room, tired of his long day. He quickly changed into a more comfortable t-shirt and tossed his pants away, leaving him in boxers and a shirt. He brushed his teeth and got under the covers, ready to sleep.

A knock on the door startled him out of his sleepy state. He looked over to the door and found a tired looking Rachel, peaking her head through the door. Eddie nodded and Rachel came into the room, sitting on the bed next to him.

“How was your mom?” She asked. Eddie looked at her, confused. “Your mom, you told me you'd talk about her. How was she?”

Eddie swallowed. “Well, uh, you met her” Rachel shook her head.

“I asked about your mom, not Sonia”

“I...” Eddie struggled with his words. “She... she was something else. She cared for me, I suppose, but in an exaggerated way. She would lie to me, making me think I was sick, so I wouldn't leave her side. I believed her lies, for years”

“That sounds messed up” Rachel commented. Eddie nodded.

“Yeah, but. She didn't want to hurt me, I know she didn't. She just didn't want to lose me like she lost my dad” Eddie felt his eyes wetting.

“I think she'd be proud of you, you know. In another life. One where your father lived”

“Really?” Eddie asked, a single tear rolling down his cheek. She stretched her hand and brushed it away.

“Yeah” Eddie put his hand around the nine-year-old, hugging her tightly.

“Your mother, Melanie. She'd be so proud of you, Rachel, so proud. She has no idea what she left behind”

 

When Richie walked by Eddie's room later that night, he melted at the sight in front of him. He changed into his pajamas and entered the shorter man's room. Eddie, now awake, smiled groggily at him, patting the space right next to him. So Richie walked over to the side of the bed. He got under the covers, and he tentatively put a hand on Eddie's middle. Eddie smiled back at him and grabbed his hand, pulling him closer, and placed Richie's hand on Rachel's stomach. Richie smiled giddily, and pulled the two people he loved the most closer to him.

* * *

 

“Uncle Georgie!” Rachel jumped onto Georgie's arms, and he hugged her tightly. “Hey here, bug”

“Careful, coconut! You might take Georgie's breath away” Richie said as he took some luggages out, and Ben swatted him for the bad pun.

“Okay, that's it, you're giving us a dollar for each horrible pun you make” Stan said. Richie grinned at him.

“Then I don't owe you no money, Stan the Man” He said, winking, and Stan sighed, exasperated.

“Rich, for the love of god, just shut up” Beverly's mop of red hair popped out from her car, glaring at him.

“Nice sunglasses, Marsh, own 'em!”He shouted in response, making the red head roll her eyes.

“Oh, you guys arrived! Wonderful” Sharon Denbrough made her way to the group, followed by a very tired looking Zack Denbrough. “Eddie, dear, we're so sorry for your loss”

Eddie shrugged it off, and accepted Sharon's hug. “Thank you Mrs. Denbrough” He said as they pulled apart.

“Eddie, how many times must I tell you, it's Sharon” The woman replied with a smile.

“This is Eileen Frettson, mom, she was Mrs. Kaspbrak's neighbor” Bill introduced them.

“Oh, I know Ellie” She said, waving her hand at her son dismisively. “You would too, if you came to visit more often” Bill rolled his eyes.

After a quick hello, Zack went back in, claiming he had to rest, and Sharon left to visit some friend of her. Georgie took Rachel and the twins to his room, and Bill and Stan followed suit. They'd be staying at the Denbroughs, while Bev, Ben and the twins would stay with Mike. Eddie, Rachel and Richie would stay with Eileen, so as to be as close as possible to what once was Eddie's home, without having to be in it.

The group spent the afternoon in the Denbroughs' front porch, talking about old memories, until the sun set. They quickly parted ways, after briefly discussing meeting at Eddie's house the next day to start cleaning the place up.

They'd decided to drive to town Saturday, so they could make the most out of their visit to the town they dreaded so much when they were younger. They'd drive back Friday, because Mike had to fly back to LA Sunday.

As Richie, following Eileen's directions, turned to Eddie's street, the shorter man's breath caught up in his throat. Richie, sensing Eddie's discomfort, quickly pulled over, despite the houses being a couple blocks away.

“You okay?” He turned to his friend, putting a gentle hand on his knee. Eileen unbuckled her seatbelt and took a hold of Eddie's seat, pulling herself closer to the pair, worry written all over her face.

Richie took Eddie's silence as a response, and quickly unbuckled his and Eddie's seatbelt. Rachel looked at them in silence, not knowing what to do.

“Eileen, give me his backpack. Eddie. Eddie, Eds, come on, answer. Please” Richie begged, tapping his hand against Eddie's cheek. “Eddie, you're alright. Come on, Eds” Eddie kept gasping for air and Eileen fetched the backpack. She took the inhaler out, clearly already having been in this situation before, and tossed it to Richie, who pushed it between Eddie's lips. As Eddie's lungs were filled with th substance, he started calming down.

No, Eddie didn't have asthma. Yes, it was another one of Sonia's sneaky lies. But Eddie had grow up getting used to calming his anxiety attacks with fake inhaler medicine, and old habits die hard.

Once Eddie's breath became more controlled, Richie's shoulders relaxed. He put the inhaler down, and hugged Eddie.

“Don't EVER do that again” He pulled away. “You alright now?” Eddie nodded. “Wanna go on?”

“Can we just, not go into her house today?” Eddie asked, pleaded, and of course Richie agreed.

“Sure. Just, don't worry. She can't hurt you, not any more” Eddie nodded, and he felt a soft hand on his shoulder. He looked back and saw Eileen smiling softly at him. He nodded at her, and she nodded back. They buckled their seatbelts and continued down the street until they found a parking lot. Eddie avoided his old house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHHH REDDIE  
> Hope you guys enjoyed  
> part two coming soon!  
> Originally I was gonna make it just one chapter, but writing chapter 5 was a nightmare and I'm not about to do that again  
> Love ya, enjoy Christmas!!!


	10. I'm coming home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M BACK  
> I know I don't believe it either  
> this chapter was supposed to be much longer tan it turned out cause I have to Split it in two (AGAIN) and I didn't want to leave you guys wating even longer  
> I'm not very proud of this to be honest, but this story is really killing me. It's very tricky and I need some time to process it

“So, it’s simple” Eileen said as she let her backpack fall on the couch without care. She turned to looked at them, eyes shinning with mischievousness. “Two girls, two boys, two rooms. I think you see where this is going”

“Um, you and I sleep together and Eds and Rachel sleep together so there’s no danger of killing or penetrating one another?” Richie joked, for some reason hoping the answer would be yes. Eileen snorted, and Eddie rolled his eyes, while Rachel moved around the kitchen searching for food of her liking.

“Who says I wouldn’t kill you?” Eileen asked, shaking her head. “But no. Rachel and I sleep in my room, you take over my parents’ room” She said, winking at them. “Come on, Rachel” The nine-year-old, already getting fond of Eileen and always looking at her like she had hung the moon, happily skipped towards her, taking her hand, both walking up the stairs.

Richie turned to Eddie. “Well this isn’t awkward at all”

“Jeezum, Richie, you really have no filter whatsoever, do you” Eddie commented, turning his back to the taller man to hide his blush and smile. Richie noticed the lack of heat in Eddie’s voice and mentally sighed in relief, glad that the petite man wasn’t mad about having to share room with him.

Eddie, noticing his friend’s silence, turned to look at him. “Cat got your tongue, Trashmouth?”

“Oh, wouldn’t you just love that” Richie mocked. He motioned towards the stairs and bowed. “Shall we?” Eddie simply rolled his eyes fondly and walked past the lanky figure, gentle footsteps filling the otherwise silent house as he walked up the stairs.

Richie followed shortly after, entering the bathroom to leave Eddie dress back in the room.

He put his pajamas, little dolphins splattered all over the baby blue fabric, then brushed his teeth. He gently cleaned his glasses before putting them back on, and took his comb out.

“Alright, lil’ dude. Help me out here” He said, and proceeded to brush his hair (or try). No longer than ten seconds later, he lowered his hands, giving up, as he helplessly stared at the comb, tangled up between wild curls. He pulled, attempting to free it from the bird nest that had settled itself on his head during the past years, and sighed, defeated, as it stayed where it was.

Soft knocking broke him out of his doze. “Yes?” He asked.

“You decent?” Eileen’s voice came.

“Yep” Richie said, and Eileen poked her head in, laughing at the pouting Richie, hairbrush still stuck in his hair.

“Sit down” She commanded as her laughter died down. Richie sat on the toilet, and he felt Eileen’s hands in his hair, freeing the hairbrush.

When Richie felt it come out, he was surprised when, little by little, Eileen run the brush through his hair, the brush bristles softly scratching his scalp.

Richie melted into the touch. It was a nice, soothing feeling. One he hadn’t felt in years.

When Richie realized what Eileen was doing, it was too late. His hair had been pulled back into a bun, and Richie blushed at the sight.

“Wow” Is all he said.

“Wow is right” Eileen answered, smiling at his reflection in the mirror, her hands on his shoulders. “It’ll be easier to comb if you sleep with it like this” She whispered against is ear, like if it were a secret. “Cute pajamas” She patted his shoulders and squeezed them before letting go. “Now shoo, your man is waiting, and I need to pee”

Richie smiled at her as he opened the door. “Thanks” He said as he closed behind him.

 

After a quick goodnight kiss to Rachel, Richie slipped into his and Eddie’s room, expecting him to be asleep but being greeted with the sight of the petite man snuggled into the covers, all his attention put on the book he was reading.

Their room was a light gray, and didn’t have much in it, making it clear no one slept there anymore. It had a wardrobe, where Richie and Eddie stored their clothes, a desk and two nightstands, one at each side of the bed, plus a bathroom attached to it, and that was pretty much it.

Eddie looked up at Richie’s arrival. “Nice bun” he commented causally, but Richie didn’t miss the blush creeping up his face, and he felt his too.

“Thanks, um…” He looked around, little lost. “I could sleep on the floor”

Eddie sent an eyeroll his way. “You’re a sap, Richie Tozier” He said as he patted the space next to him. “The bed’s big enough for the nine of us, ya know?” And while it wasn’t true, the bed was perfectly capable of having both of them plus the girls in it.

Richie smiled at Eddie. “Whatever you say, Eds” Eddie glared at the nickname, but didn’t say anything.

Once Richie was settled in bed, Eddie asked in a soft voice “Does the light bother you?” Richie shook his head and rolled to face the door, and their conversation ended there. Eventually, Eddie turned the light off, and the room turned pitch black. Eddie spared a glance Richie’s way before turning to face the opposite direction. “Night, Richie” He said. He got no response.

 

The next morning, at exactly 8:17, Eddie woke up to his phone’s notification ding. He turned to looked at a silent Richie before opening the incoming messages.

**Group chat**

**Derry the Hell Hole**

_Mike Hanlon, Ben Hanscom, Bill Denbrough, Eddie Kaspbrak_

_Bill on a Hill:_ anyone up? stan is getting annoying.

_Ben on a Hen:_ we’re up and running. when should we head over ed?

Eddie sighed, looking at the clock, and typed up a response.

_Ed on a Bed:_ It’s too early for this. I’m not ready.

Mike Hanlon **changed** Eddie Kaspbrak **’s nickname to** _Eddie’s not Ready_

_Eddie’s not Ready:_ Very funny, Hanlon

_Mike on a Bike:_ *snicker snicker*

_Eddie’s not Ready:_ Be here in 30

Eddie put his phone down and turned to poke Richie’s side. “Wake up, Richie” He whined, but the man didn’t flinch. Eddie thought back to the melody that woke him up every day, just as it woke the Radio Host.

“Of course” He picked his phone back up and open YouTube, but a voice cut him off.

“You gotta sing it, Eds” Richie mused, and Eddie heard the grin in his voice.

“I’m not gonna sing Killer Queen, you jackass!” Eddie exclaimed, slapping his arm, and Richie turned to him with a grumpy expression. “Language” He grumbled. Eddie sighed and stood up.

“Breakfast in thirty” He said as he walked out the room.

Richie sighed and hid his head in the pillow.

 

As Richie walked down the stairs, not bothering to stop by the bathroom, he found everybody except Rachel and Bill in Eileen’s living room, having breakfast and making small talk.

“Look who’s up and running” Bev commented as he walked down, handing him a coffee mug. Richie nodded towards her as a thanks, sitting down on the couch. Malia immediately found her way onto his lap, looking up to him, wide green eyes boring into sleepy brown ones.

“Monin’ uncle Chee” She said, and Richie patted her head. Zaina climbed the pillows behind him, bopping his hair bun. “What’s this?” She asked in a giddy voice. Richie chuckled.

“Ask Eileen” he answered, and the toddler turned her attention to the woman who stood in the kitchen, discussing something with Ben and Stan as they prepared breakfast.

Eddie and Mike talked animatedly as they set the table, Bev sometimes intervening.

Footsteps could be heard on the upper floor, and sometime after, walking down the stairs. Soon later Richie spotted Bill carrying Rachel downstairs, her eyes closed and face tired. “U-um, Rich? You might wanna check her out”

Richie immediately got up, holding Malia and having Bev take her. She approached Rachel and gently cupped her face. “Hey, apricot, what’s wrong?” Rachel mumbled something Richie didn’t quite get. He thanked Bill and pulled the kid to his arms, the stuttering man turning to entertain the twins, all they while Eddie and Mike approached the father and daughter, the rest forgetting their conversation and paying attention.

“You’re gonna have to repeat that, Rach” Richie said, sitting down on an armchair, knocking them back and forth slightly.

“‘m tired. It hurts” She said, rubbing her forehead against his shoulder. Eddie kneeled next to them, putting a hand on her head.

“She doesn’t seem to have a fever. What hurts, sweetie?” He removed as Mike gently rubbed her back.

“My everything hurts” She said, over dramatically.

“Your everything?” Stan chuckled, approaching them. He took Rachel from Richie’s arms and locked eyes with her narrowed ones. “Well then, however are you going to help Eddie clean his house?”

The little kid shrugged, visibly fighting a smile. “I guess I can’t” She involuntarily let out a yawn. Stan shook his head and turned her upside down, shaking her gently.

“Better shake out of it!” He exclaimed, an she giggled. He turned her back up. “You better not be lying to us, young woman”

Rachel pouted. “Hey, isn’t _he_ supposed to be my father?” She pointed towards Richie, who let out a chuckle and said, “I have no idea what you’re talking about” as Stan exclaimed “not anymore!” Rachel giggled again and Stan let her down.

“You need to help Eddie with his house, apricot” Richie told her, rubbing her arm.

“But I don’t wanna! I’m tired…” Rachel grew nervous as her father’s stare turned strict.

“Rachel, Eddie needs our help. How many times has he helped you when you were in need?” Rachel lowered her head.

“It’s okay, Rich” Bill spoke up. “Ben and I were staying with the twins and preparing something for lunch. Rachel can stay with us”

Richie sighed and turned back to his daughter. “Last time” The kid nodded. Eddie put a hand on Richie’s shoulder.

“Have something to eat, Rich” He said. The taller man nodded and stood.

 

Eddie stared up at his old house, keys in hand. Richie put his hands on Eddie’s shoulders. “You alright, Spaghetti?”

“Don’t call me that” He said, almost absently. Eileen approached them. “She didn’t have many things this last years, most of them in the attic. It shouldn’t take long. I’m thinking we do the first two floors today and leave the attic for the next day. And Eddie,” The petite man turned to his ex-neighbor, humming. Eileen ruffled his hair. “It’ll be alright” Eddie nodded.

He walked up to the porch, taking a moment to breathe, and unlocked the door walking in.

As everybody followed, Eileen stopped Richie. “Stick with him” She said. “He’s gonna need it”

When they walked in, Stan immediately took the lead. “Alright, everybody. Not to brag, but for what I know I’m literally the only organized person here,” He earned a couple of chuckles. “and what we’re about to do requires a lot of organization. So, we’ll divide into pairs. Each pair will take care of one room at a time, and each room will have three boxes. One for trash, one for things to keep, and one for things to sell” He pointed to the pile of boxes Bill, Rachel and Ben had made before going to the supermarket. “So, Eileen and I will clean the bathrooms and kitchen; Bev and Mike, you’ll take care of the living room and halls; and Eddie, it’s only obvious you do your and your mother’s room. Richie, you’re with him. Don’t do anything stupid” Richie held his arms up innocently. “Alright people, we don’t have all day”

 

“You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine” Eddie replied, gripping the covers harder. He felt the bed dip as Richie sat next to him.

“Eds, you’ve been sitting here for the last ten minutes” He said softly.

“I-I know, I just-” He cut himself off, biting his lip and closing his eyes to stop the pool of tears resting on his eyelids from falling. He felt Richie’s arms wrap tentatively around his middle, and he turned to return the hug.

“It’s okay. I know it’s hard. Let’s go little by little, yeah?” Richie felt Eddie nod against his shoulder. “Okay. How about I just show you stuff, and you tell me where it goes. You don’t need to move, okay?” Eddie nodded again, pulling away to look at Richie with red rimmed eyes.

“Okay”

 

“You knew Eddie’s mom, then?” Stan asked as he meticulously put the cutlery in a box. Eileen nodded.

“Did you?” She asked as she looked through the fridge.

“I’ve seen her a couple times. She’s something, that woman” Eileen turned to him, lips curled up in a little smile.

“Mrs. K was a lot to take, yes” She said, closing the fridge door and sitting on the counter. “But she loved Eddie. Sure, she was furious about his life choices, but I came here every Sunday and she talked about him… Eddie thinks she was never proud of him. He has no idea how much she loved him. She talked for hours and hours about how much she missed him. Not just her normal banter, she actually meant what she said. She felt sorry about lying to him, but once she started, she couldn’t stop. She wanted him back at her side, yes, to be just hers, but I know she really just wanted a second chance to be the mother she should’ve been in the first place”

Stan looked at Eileen, perplexed. “Oh, wow. I don’t really know what to say…” He said. Eileen shrugged.

“Sonia suffered a great loss and couldn’t cope with it. When her son left, she felt like she had lost him too. She just didn’t know how to bring him back” She hopped off the counter. “But don’t worry, Stan. Eddie will understand, some day” She reopened the fridge and continued cleaning up.

Stan stared after her for a few seconds, before returning to his work.

 

“So…” Beverly said, balancing an ugly vase between her hands, deciding if she should sell it or throw it.

“Don’t you even start, Beverly!” Mike said, pointing an accusing finger at her. Bev lifted her hands, dropping the vase, and it broke. She looked down at it. “Well that settles it”

“God Bev” Mike muttered as Stan shouted, “What was that?”

“Nothing!” Bev shouted back. She turned back to Mike. “You know, I’m not judging you for liking her”

“I don’t like Eileen, okay?” He whisper-shouted. Bev only laughed.

“Mike, I see the way you look at her. It’s like, you know…” She pointed at the door they were standing next to. Mike scoffed. He looked down at is shoes.

“I swear if you have a one on one girl night and talk about this I will die of embarrassment” He said, and Bev laughed, patting his back.

“You think so little of me, oh dear Michael” Mike rolled his eyes, and pointed at the broken vase.

“Clean up” He said, and Bev giggled, giving him a side hug before complying.

 

Stan knocked on Eddie’s mother’s room door, opening it after hearing a faint “come in”. He poked his head inside.

“Hey guys, we finished already. We’re heading over to Mike’s farm to help with lunch. Are you gonna take much longer? Because-” Stan paused when he realized he could only see Eddie sitting on the bed, the three boxes around him. Stan’s brow furrowed. “Where’s Richie?” He asked.

Richie’s head popped out from under the king-sized bed, a grin in his face. “Right here, Stan the Man. You guys get going, we still have some things to sort through” He said, Eddie nodding. Stan slowly nodded along.

“Alright, well, we took the boxes upstairs for you to sort through them quickly tomorrow just in case. See you later, I guess” He said. With that, he turned and walked down the corridor.

It was silent in the room as Richie rummaged through the floor under the bed, pulling out things for Eddie to sort out. As he reached the end of the bed, thinking he’d finished, Richie’s hands found a box. It was small and rectangular, and quite heavy. Richie tried to pull it out, but it was stuck to the floor. “Hey Eds?” He called out, hearing the infamous ‘don’t call me that’ and ignoring it. He poked his head out. “There’s a box stuck to the floor. We’re gonna have to move the bed”

Eddie frowned, confused, but stood up, waiting for Richie to come out from under the bed. As the taller man freed himself, they stood at different ends of the bed. “On three” Eddie said, and Richie nodded. They counted down and lifted the bed, moving it towards the opposite end. As they put the furniture down, Eddie turned to stare at the box, which had his name written in bold letters. “What the hell…” He muttered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd say I'll see you son but that's probably a lie, so...  
> Anyway interesting things are coming next chapterrrrrr

**Author's Note:**

> Writing next Chapter cause I'm bored.  
> Also, Let me know what you think! I appreciate the comments and kudos!!!!


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